Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 team "shell-shocked" after clean sweep at the Golden Joysticks

When Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 launched in April, the team behind it could scarcely have dreamed of the reception it would get.

Now, seven months on from its release, the game has begun raking in the first of undoubtedly many awards to come, with Expedition 33 taking home all seven Golden Joystick Awards it was nominated for, including Ultimate Game of the Year and both Best Lead and Supporting Performer for Jennifer English (Maelle) and Ben Starr (Verso) respectively.

Speaking to Sandfall Interactive CEO Guillaume Broche, art director Nicholas Maxson-Francombe, and actors Jennifer English, Ben Starr, Rich Keeble (Monoco, François), Devora Wilde (Clea) and Aliona Baranova (Marie), their shock was evident.

"I don’t know what's happening," said Broche.

"No, same," echoed Maxson-Francome.

After passing the microphone around to thank the fans, Wilde aptly chimed in, saying: "We're all shell-shocked. Everyone's like, blank faces."

Considering the rampant fan support online, RadioTimes.com asked the team if they had any inkling that the game would perform so well on the night.

"For sure, like, we did see all the nominations, but I mean, now that it's kind of come to reality, it's just kind of a bit weird for all of us," Maxson-Francome explained.

Broche continued: "I think people don't really realise that now, it's become big, but before the launch, it was not supposed to be big, and I think we all felt the same thing. It's like, 'It's going to be cool. It's not going to be big; it's going to be cool'. And what's happening today is, as we said, nobody understands what's really happening.

"But it's a weird feeling, you know, when you put your heart out into the world and the world embraces it and gives you so much love back.

"We get so much love from the players – all the messages, and the fan art and the covers. It's so touching and incredible that it's very hard to explain.

"But we are shell-shocked, we can say that for sure."

Ben Starr, charming as ever, built on Broche's words, saying: "People, I think at the end of 2025, are going to forget that this game is a small game. It was never as big as it is [now]. It's turned into this kind of cultural moment, phenomenon, but that's just because the game is very honest, and a lot of people have bought into that."

After a short intermission in which the trophies were brought in – "I just won Best Soundtrack, that's wild!" Starr said – he returns to his "such an important speech".

"I don't think anyone expected this, because it's just that it's a small game, and it's become this thing because the people who've played it have really appreciated it. Seeing the word of mouth was wild, seeing more and more people play it and want to play it.

"No one expected those numbers, and we've all just been messaging each other, thinking 'Well, this is just silly. This is just silly. Now, everyone just stop. It's a silly joke'. But yeah, it's been very cool."

Check out the rest of this interview on the Radio Times Gaming YouTube channel.

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