Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 breaks records but exposes prejudice against RPGs

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, developed by the French studio Sandfall Interactive, became one of the biggest gaming phenomena in 2025. With more than 3.3 million copies sold, the title surprised the market with its fidelity to classic turn-based RPG mechanics.

However, its creators, Guillaume Broche and Tom Guillermin, state that success is not enough to eliminate the structural prejudice that the subgenre has carried for two decades.

A genre with history and stigmas

During the 1990s and early 2000s, turn-based RPGs were synonymous with success, driven by sagas like Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Chrono Trigger. But according to Broche, the rise of the HD generation and open worlds pushed turn-based combat into the background. The market began to prioritize cinematic and real-time experiences, with a strong emphasis on action.

"When open-world games became massive, turn-based RPGs started to be seen as boring or outdated," Broche explained in a recent interview. Although titles like Persona 5 and Like a Dragon have sold millions of units, the negative perception persists, both among the public and within development studios.

Sandfall's bet: staying true to the format

Far from adapting to dominant trends, the team behind Expedition 33 decided to bet on their own artistic vision, without modifying the combat system due to commercial pressures. "We didn't make decisions to avoid prejudice. We did it because it was what we wanted to do," Broche explained.

The result was a successful combination of deep narrative, careful artistic design, and renewed turn-based combat. The game received praise from specialized critics and influential developers, establishing itself as an unexpected milestone for the genre.

Renaissance or exception?

Despite Expedition 33's success, Broche and Guillermin believe that turn-based RPGs still face structural barriers in the market. While sagas like Persona have sold more than 22 million units, the idea persists that the turn-based system is an anachronism compared to the dynamism of real-time action.

This prejudice has real consequences: fewer investments in the genre, fewer titles published, and a community forced to wait years between major releases. However, the existence of successful exceptions like Persona, Like a Dragon, or the upcoming Persona 4 Revival, scheduled for 2026, shows that there is still room—and demand—for turn-based combat.