{"id":2449235,"date":"2025-06-19T08:14:59","date_gmt":"2025-06-19T12:14:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-indie-video-games-like-clair-obscur-are-going-gangbusters\/"},"modified":"2025-06-19T08:18:33","modified_gmt":"2025-06-19T12:18:33","slug":"why-indie-video-games-like-clair-obscur-are-going-gangbusters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-indie-video-games-like-clair-obscur-are-going-gangbusters\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Indie Video Games Like &#8216;Clair Obscur&#8217; Are Going Gangbusters"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwhy-indie-video-games-like-clair-obscur-are-going-gangbusters%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2449235&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the success of the video game *Clair obscur: Expedition 33*, released by the French indie studio Sandfall Interactive. Since its debut in April, the game has sold over two million copies and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/publisher-halts-best-selling-book-after-sexual-misconduct-claims-suddenly-surface-against-author\/\" title=\"Publisher Halts Best-Selling Book After Sexual Misconduct Claims Suddenly Surface Against Author\">received positive reviews<\/a> from both gaming journalists and players. Set in a fantasy world inspired by French culture, it follows a group of warriors on a quest to thwart the plans of a sinister paintress. The game has been praised for its engaging combat, writing, visuals, and music, positioning it as a potential game of the year contender.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike major studios like Ubisoft, which frequently enough involve thousands of developers and meaningful budgets in their productions-like the recently released *Assassin&#8217;s Creed: Shadows*, which relied on over 7,000 staff members and reportedly cost between $200 and $350 million-Sandfall&#8217;s team of just 30 was responsible for the critical creative aspects of *Clair Obscur*. This slimmed-down approach not only led to a more focused development process but also allowed the game to avoid what the author describes as &#8220;woke ideology&#8221; that can detract from the gaming experience.<\/p>\n<p>Despite criticisms of not being inclusive enough, sandfall has defended itself by highlighting the diverse backgrounds of its team and collaborators. The success of *Clair Obscur* suggests a growing demand for well-crafted games without political messaging, positioning indie developers as a formidable force in the gaming industry while larger studios struggle with their ideologically driven approaches. The article concludes with a proclamation that the age of independant gaming is upon us, marking a shift in the landscape of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mario-kart-and-early-bedtimes-these-6-headlines-show-the-medias-worship-of-the-biden-administration\/\" title=\"\u2018Mario Kart\u2019 And \u2018Early Bedtimes\u2019: These 6 Headlines Show The Media\u2019s Worship Of The Biden Administration\">gaming world<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>By excluding woke ideology, new title <em>Clair Obscur: Expedition 33<\/em> has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/paultassi\/2025\/05\/06\/clair-obscur-expedition-33-has-sold-two-million-copies-in-12-days-deserves-more\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">shattered sales records<\/a> since its release in late April and achieved the rare distinction of rave reviews from both gaming journalists and gamers themselves.<\/p>\n<p>Set in a French-inspired fantasy world, the game follows a group of warriors trying to stop the dark plans of a mysterious Paintress. Reviewers praise the game for its combat, writing, visuals, and music, and it is already a strong contender for game of the year.<\/p>\n<p>It&rsquo;s also the first game from French indie studio Sandfall Interactive with a core <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sandfall.co\/team\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">team<\/a> of 30 people. Granted, Sandfall contracted external voice actors, performance capture artists, musicians, and choir singers, and the credits list <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mobygames.com\/game\/241065\/clair-obscur-expedition-33\/credits\/windows\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">412 people total<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>But the core team of 30 was responsible for the most important creative decisions. They built the gameplay, wrote the story, directed the music, and designed the characters. Compare that to the bloated &ldquo;core teams&rdquo; of thousands at heavy-hitter studios like Ubisoft.<\/p>\n<p>Sandfall&rsquo;s conquest of the gaming scene has rattled big studios like the aforementioned Ubisoft, where many Sandfall developers ironically once worked.<\/p>\n<p>Ubisoft&rsquo;s most recent release, <em>Assassin&rsquo;s Creed: Shadows<\/em>, involved more than a monstrous <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mobygames.com\/game\/239204\/assassins-creed-shadows\/credits\/xbox-series\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">7,000 people<\/a> in its production, as reflected in its comically long, two-hour credit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=4Cm4tQOBPxA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sequence<\/a>. That army of developers came at a staggering cost.<\/p>\n<p>While the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/blame-game-for-california-fires-grows-as-lawsuits-and-recall-efforts-gain-steam-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Blame ... for California fires grows as lawsuits and recall efforts gain steam - Washington Examiner\">company hasn&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t released any official budget data, industry insiders place the total for <em>Shadows<\/em> at anywhere between <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theglobeandmail.com\/investing\/markets\/stocks\/UBSFY\/pressreleases\/31524412\/ubisoft-needs-more-assassins-creed-shadows-sales-to-succeed\/#:~:text=While%20Ubisoft%20hasn't%20revealed%20the%20exact%20amount,break%20even%20on%20a%20%24250%20million%20budget.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$200 and $350 million<\/a>. Ubisoft almost certainly did not make money, as its financial records from last month indicate that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/angel-studios-surpasses-10-million-in-new-audience-investment-initiative-replace-the-hollywood-gatekeepers-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Angel ... surpasses  million in new audience-investment initiative: \u2018Replace the Hollywood gatekeepers\u2019 - Washington Examiner\">studio&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s sales saw a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pocketgamer.biz\/ubisoft-revenue-falls-175-in-fy-2024-25-as-it-eyes-expansion-of-key-ips\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">17.5 percent<\/a> drop from last year.<\/p>\n<p>This was particularly devastating given that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/ubisoft-investors-grill-ceo-cfo-on-potential-tencent-sale-delays-and-financial-woes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ubisoft&rsquo;s finances were in a terrible place<\/a> to start, so they needed <em>Shadows <\/em>to be a hit.<\/p>\n<p>So, where is all that money going, if not to better games or stronger profits? Much of it, predictably, funnels into woke nonsense that diminishes the product. Ubisoft <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/working-in-the-shadows-how-an-assassins-creed-researcher-braved-the-backlash\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">paid for input<\/a> from <a href=\"https:\/\/faculty-directory.dartmouth.edu\/sachi-schmidt-hori\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sachi Schmidt-Hori<\/a>, a Dartmouth professor who specializes in relationships between Buddhist priests and adolescent boys in feudal Japan. How would a pedophilia expert make a game about samurai assassins better? I guess I&rsquo;m not an Ubisoft executive.<\/p>\n<p>By contrast, <em>Clair Obscur <\/em>had no such ideological interference. There are no lectures, no jarring identity politics &mdash; just a beautiful game. The <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >entire budget funded transporting players<\/a> into a beautiful French fantasy.<\/p>\n<p>So, naturally, woke scolds have attacked Sandfall for not being activist enough.<\/p>\n<p>Disgruntled social media users <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/kingkittan91\/status\/1930241899966689636\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">accused<\/a> the studio of racism for allegedly not hiring non-French minorities to work on the game. Sandfall <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/SandfallGames\/status\/1930714329294262551\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">responded<\/a>: &ldquo;Expedition 33 was created with respect and tolerance by teams and partners from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives. Our game was crafted with love. Please don&rsquo;t weaponize it to spread hate.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Racism claims are the left&rsquo;s classic tactic for kneecapping rising threats. Interestingly, Sandfall&rsquo;s response, while including references to diversity and tolerance like a good liberal mea culpa, ended there. There was no push to atone for supposed sins, no promise to do better, no rush to say there would be more minorities in the next game.<\/p>\n<p>Sandfall understands what studios like Ubisoft fail to: Wokeness is costly both before and after launch. The money and effort wasted on wokeness is better left unspent, especially when it causes the final product to flop.<\/p>\n<p><em>Clair Obscur <\/em>has the potential to radically reshape the industry. It proves gamers want well-crafted games free of forced messaging. In a sea of expensive failures, <em>Clair Obscur <\/em>stands out as a paragon of classic gaming from a lean team of focused developers.<\/p>\n<p>The old gaming giants are bloated, ideologically captured, and creatively bankrupt shells of their former selves. Their failure to excise the woke rot has caused smaller, smarter, and far more in-touch indie studios to pick up the slack.<\/p>\n<p><em>Clair Obscur<\/em> succeeded because it avoided the political pitfalls and focused on creating a great gaming experience. Sandfall delivered while Ubisoft et. al. haven&rsquo;t.<\/p>\n<p>Welcome to the age of the indies.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div>\n<p>      Douglas Blair is a cultural commentator and author of <a href=\"https:\/\/douglasblair.substack.com\/\">The Blair Broadcast<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 breaks sales records, earns acclaim<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1733,"featured_media":2449236,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/21823478026_8b9dd94322_k.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[57455,57456,57457,57454,57458],"class_list":["post-2449235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","tag-clair-obscur","tag-gaming-trends","tag-independent-developers","tag-indie-games","tag-video-game-industry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/21823478026_8b9dd94322_k.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2449235","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1733"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2449235"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2449235\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2449239,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2449235\/revisions\/2449239"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2449236"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2449235"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2449235"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2449235"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}