French President Emmanuel Macron praised Sandfall Interactive's work. Claire Obsker: Expedition 33 After the critically acclaimed RPG swept The Game Awards 2025. But his message drew criticism from some fans. They use Macron's past comments to condemn real-life violence in video games and say he Claire Obsker: Expedition 33It's a historic victory that scores political points.
Ahead of the event on December 11th, Claire Obsker: Expedition 33 We made history with 12 TGA 2025 nominations across 10 categories. It won nine of those categories, missing out only on the Best Audio Design category. Battlefield 6. As such, Sandfall's turn-based RPG achieved unprecedented results for a French production at the Los Angeles ceremony, accounting for 30% of the total TGA 2025 awards.
10/10 GOTY Winner Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 New Content You Can Play Now From Just Shadow
Sandfall Interactive pulled off a surprise performance at The Game Awards 2025 by immediately announcing new content for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
French President Congratulates Sandfall After Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Sweeps Game Awards
In an Instagram post following the December 11 show, Emmanuel Macron congratulated Sandfall Interactive on its massive success, calling it a “historic first” and “a great source of pride for Montpellier and France.” This is not the first time the French president has recognized the award title. Macron also praised Claire Obsker: Expedition 33 It was released in early May 2025, after the game had already gained significant commercial momentum and rave reviews from reviewers.
While some Instagram users expressed congratulations and national pride with President Macron, others questioned the sincerity of his comments. Among the most popular reactions to his December 12 post was a reference to a July 2023 press conference in which the French president controversially said video games encourage real-life violence. The statement was part of Macron's comments on the widespread riots sparked by the June 2023 police killing of Nahel Merzouk, a 17-year-old French citizen of Algerian and Moroccan descent, who was shot during a routine traffic stop. The killing sparked protests in Paris, with demonstrators accusing police of racial profiling.
“Sometimes it feels like some of them are drunk on video games on the streets,” Macron said, referring to the rioters at a 2023 press conference. He later walked back those comments and said he did not mean to criticize the industry as a whole. “Video games are culture, entertainment and spectacle,” the French president said in September 2023, pointing out that he was only criticizing the gamification of violence and not the medium itself. Despite this, some Instagram users continued to reference his previous comments, accusing him of using the following: Claire Obsker: Expedition 33Rather than delivering a sincere message of support, they succeeded in scoring political points.
The Game Awards Winners: The most awarded games each year
|
year |
game |
Total TGA Awards |
|---|---|---|
|
2014 |
fate |
2 |
|
Dragon Age: Inquisition |
||
|
mario kart 8 |
||
|
Valiant Hearts: The Great War |
||
|
2015 |
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt |
3 |
|
2016 |
Overwatch |
4 |
|
2017 |
cuphead |
3 |
|
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice |
||
|
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild |
||
|
2018 |
Red Dead Redemption 2 |
4 |
|
2019 |
Disco Elysium |
4 |
|
2020 |
the last of us part 2 |
7 |
|
2021 |
Forza Horizon 5 |
3 |
|
You need two things |
||
|
2022 |
god of war ragnarok |
6 |
|
2023 |
Baldur's Gate 3 |
6 |
|
2024 |
Astrobot |
4 |
|
2025 |
Claire Obsker: Expedition 33 |
9 |
The label “historic first” that Macron used to describe Sandfall Interactive’s debut title is accurate in many ways. In addition to being the first French game to win the grand prize at this awards ceremony, Claire Obsker: Expedition 33 It broke the record set in 5 years. the last of us part 2With nine wins, it became the most awarded game in TGA history. During the December 11 event, Sandfall Shadow dropped the previously announced free DLC for the game and added a new location called Verso's Drafts and a sophisticated photo mode.
- released
-
April 24, 2025
- ESRB
-
Ages 17 and older / Blood and gore, strong language, suggestive themes, violence
- developer
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Sandpole Interactive
- publisher
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Kepler Interactive