French President Emmanuel Macron Is Back on Instagram Celebrating Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, This Time for Winning Game of the Year

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's record-breaking show astatine past week's The Game Awards has caught the oculus of French president Emmanuel Macron, who celebrated the quality of its Game of the Year grant connected Instagram implicit the weekend.

Sandfall Interactive's role-playing crippled swept The Game Awards 2025 with 9 wins, the astir immoderate video crippled has won successful a azygous The Game Awards show. As good arsenic Game of the Year, Clair Obscur won champion narrative, champion music, and champion performance, fending disconnected contention from Death Stranding 2, Donkey Kong Bananza, Hollow Knight: Silksong, Hades 2, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 to assertion the apical prize. Be definite to cheque retired everything announced astatine The Game Awards 2025 for more, arsenic good arsenic the winners database successful full.

"Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has conscionable been named Game of the Year successful Los Angeles. A historical archetypal for a French title!" Macron exclaimed successful French, appending an representation of Gustave, Maelle, and Sciel. "Great pridefulness for Montpellier and for France. Congratulations to the Sandfall Interactive team. For aboriginal generations and those that follow!"

Of course, this isn't the archetypal clip Sandfall Interactive has received nationalist backing from the French president — erstwhile the RPG sold 1 cardinal copies successful conscionable 3 days, Macron besides took to Instagram to say: "A cardinal copies and to date, 1 of the best-rated games successful history: and yes, it's French! Congratulations to Sandfall Interactive and each the creators of Expedition 33. You are a shining illustration of French audacity and creativity."

While galore commenters shared the President's excitement, immoderate chose to punctual him of the comments helium made during France's 2023 riots successful which helium suggested young radical had been poisoned oregon intoxicated by video crippled unit and societal media.

He aboriginal downplayed the comments, claiming helium had "always considered that video games are an accidental for France, for our youth, and their future, for our jobs and our economy," and stressed that helium "expressed concerns astatine the extremity of June due to the fact that video crippled conventions had been utilized by criminals to normalize unit connected societal media," adding: "It is this unit that I condemn, not video games themselves."

France President Emmanuel Macron has praised Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP via Getty Images.

Accepting the Game of the Year grant to rapturous applause, Clair Obscur manager Guillaume Broche thanked the "incredible team" astatine Sandfall Interactive, astir of whom were successful attendance and successful costume. Broche extended his acknowledgment to the "unsung heroes" of the video crippled industry, "the radical who marque tutorials connected YouTube connected however to marque a game, due to the fact that we had nary thought however to marque a crippled before."

Clair Obscur launched successful April close up against Bethesda's The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, with some games hitting Game Pass arsenic time 1 releases. It was felt that Clair Obscur mightiness conflict nether those circumstances, but it enjoyed instant and important popularity, and would spell connected to merchantability 5 cardinal copies by October.

IGN's Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 reappraisal returned a 9/10. We said: "Wearing its inspirations connected its sleeve, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 paints itself into the pantheon of large RPGs with a superb combat strategy and a gripping, harrowing story."

While accepting the Game of the Year award, Sandfall shadow-dropped caller DLC and Patch 1.5.0, which introduces caller determination Verso's Drafts and immoderate genuinely challenging brag fights. Are You Starting Clair Obscur: Expedition 33? Here's a Handy Guide for Beginners.

Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP via Getty Images.

Vikki Blake is simply a newsman for IGN, arsenic good arsenic a critic, columnist, and advisor with 15+ years acquisition moving with immoderate of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's besides a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her astatine BlueSky.