Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 devs say “being recognized in Japan” is “very personal to us” after making a game “inspired by so many incredible JRPGs we grew up with”

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 devs at Sandfall Interactive say “being recognized in Japan” with their French JRPG’s Breakthrough Award win at the Japan Game Awards is “very personal to us.”

Creative director Guillaume Broche has been very open about the games that inspired Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, from Final Fantasy to Persona, not to mention the Atelier series, Shadow Hearts, Suikoden, and more. This is something that’s been reiterated in Sandfall Interactive’s response to its debut RPG’s big win at the Japan Game Awards.

“It is such an honor to receive the Breakthrough Award at the Japan Game Awards,” begins a tweet posted on the official Clair Obscur Twitter account. It continues: “Expedition 33 is inspired by so many incredible JRPGs we grew up with and love, so being recognized in Japan is both important and very personal to us. We could not be more grateful. Merci beaucoup.”

The Breakthrough Award was only just established last year, with the previous winner being The Exit 8 – a horror game which sees players explore an endless Japan-inspired underground passageway while identifying “anomalies.” Needless to say, the two winners are pretty different, but they both made a big impression.

Back to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – Broche has previously expressed how much it means to him that players in Japan enjoy his game so much. Even with its major worldwide acclaim, he said, “I feel more pleased that the game has been accepted by people in Japan than I do about it receiving acclaim in any other country.” There’s no doubt he’s going to be feeling proud about this latest win, as he should be.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was inspired by JRPG greats like Final Fantasy, but its director loves gaming because of an old-school 1988 beat ’em up.