Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 had an absolute sweep at The Game Awards 2025, winning nine awards, including Game of the Year. It even broke the record for most nominations at the event. While it's hardly surprising that it won so many awards, it lost out on just two of the categories it was nominated for.
Almost every aspect of the game is award-worthy, from its music, art, narrative, direction, and even combat. Director Guillaume Broche recently spoke about the combat philosophy of the game, saying it follows a "very Japanese" formula. It throws some difficult enemies at you right from the start, but they can be beaten at lower levels if you're good enough.
In a conversation with Denfaminicogamer (via Automaton), along with GPTRACK50's Hiroyuki Kobayashi, Broche talked about Clair Obscur's combat philosophy and difficulty. It differs from many "Western" RPGs by presenting tough enemies and bosses right at the start of the game, rather than later on in the game.
“In Western games, you don’t often see an obviously overpowered boss placed early on," he said. "One of the reasons I love JRPGs is precisely this experience of challenging something and eventually overcoming it. Even if...
