"How wrong I was" – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's Ben Starr told friends to keep expectations "in check" before the RPG's launch because "this isn't going to be a smash hit"

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 screenshot of Verso, a man with black hair with white streaks running through his fringe.

I feel like you don't need to be told at this point about how big of a deal Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 became. It is already the most-awarded game ever, and that lead keeps growing. It is also on course to be the second game ever to take home the big five Game of the Year awards after Baldur's Gate 3 in 2023. Safe to say it's pretty big. But it's a game that almost felt like it came out of nowhere from first-time developer Sandfall Interactive, so naturally, many are surprised at how well the game actually did.

Among them is lead actor Ben Starr, who has spoken with Aztech: Forgotten Gods narrative designer Alexa Ray Corriea on the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences YouTube channel. Starr recalls, "2025 was an interesting year for me because I remember speaking to you about Expedition 33 coming out and I really played it down to a lot of people." And while the actor admits, "I don't like hyping up my work really before it's happened. I really like it to speak for itself and then we kind of talk about it." He wasn't expecting it to become so huge.