🔗 Share this article

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 isn't just a top GOTY contender, it’s also an enormous commercial success. Studio Sandfall Interactive and publisher their publishing partner announced that the game exceeded five million copies in sales, this is even with its status as a day-one release on Xbox Game Pass.

Its success was a shock to the developers. I was convinced that we would have a solid title garnering reasonable commercial success,” a key executive explained.

The CTO and lead programmer noted the game's critical score, which currently sits at 93, came as perhaps “maybe the biggest shock to the studio compared to our early predictions and what the reality turned out to be. Because when it dropped everybody in the studio was screaming and jumping. It felt absolutely wild.”

That success prompted Sandfall developing a free update for players featuring fresh areas, enemies, and boss fights, reportedly will release within the “upcoming month[s]”.

However, despite the game's evolution, don’t expect the studio to grow. We've built an excellent group with a strong creative director with a clear direction for the project plus upcoming innovations. Our goal is to maintain the small-team dynamic that worked for this game then develop one big game after another,” they said.

The studio's scale generated significant conversation following launch. Some developers, like Hideo Kojima, viewed Sandfall’s team as the “ideal” for a studio. Although the team is and was indeed a small team compared to its AAA counterparts, one glance at the game's credits reveals numerous contributors worked on it; the French studio hired a team in Korea for animation work, as an instance.

“Some hiring will occur a bit more definitely if we have next an upcoming production peak in upcoming years,” they said. “Yet I picture essentially a craft studio with a small number of really talented people that can make artistic collaborations.” They emphasized that Sandfall’s vision as a studio “focuses on preserving the successful elements that led to this accomplishment from the start.”

While it may be not the right time to disclose concrete plans about future projects — and trust me, efforts were made — they are certain what’s at its core. “Strategic combat, forms the foundation of our creations,” they said. “The timing isn't right to specify our next interests, however, it's crucial to adhere to our studio's essence through compelling worlds plus innovative play that excites us.”

They mentioned that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 originated from the creative director developing his passion title. It is hoped that's something we can continue with upcoming games.”