It’s simply not enough that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 swept The Game Awards. Now, it’s set its sights on the Game Developer Choice Awards—and has been nominated for eight of the nine possible award categories.
As reported by Game Developer, (via GamesIndustry.biz), Expedition 33 is nominated for—take a deep breath now—Best Audio, Best Debut, Best Design, Innovation Award, Best Narrative, Best Technology, Best Visual Art, and Game of the Year. The only award it hasn’t been nominated for is Social Impact. It’s clearly a big source of national pride for the French, though, as President Emmanuel Macron gave it a shoutout.
The GDCA is voted on by video game developers, so you can be sure they know their stuff. Our own reviewer Justin Wagner wrote he’d “never played an RPG quite like it,” but felt the combat’s “real-time half and the turn-based half feel at odds” with each other. Love it or hate it, you’ve got to admit adding a parry mechanic to turn-based fights is pretty innovative.
People also fell in love with the game’s cast and characters. Daredevil actor Charlie Cox got a Game Awards nomination for his voice acting, but passed all the praise on to the motion capture performance of Maxence Cazorla.
Expedition 33 is made by developer Sandfall Interactive. It’s the studio’s first outing together, and it already beat Baldur’s Gate 3’s record at The Game Awards, getting nine wins. It also matched the Dungeons and Dragons RPG at the Golden Joysticks, winning seven awards. The team says “there is a bit of pressure” for whatever game they make next, but they plan to trust their instincts.
Trailing just behind Expedition 33 at the GDCA is Ghost of Yōtei, which has been nominated for five awards, including the coveted Game of the Year. Blue Prince, one of my favourites last year, is up for four.
