The success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is an important lesson for the entire industry, which it is not ready to learn
It's been a long time since we've seen such a strong debut from a new studio that also unveils the accumulated problems of the industry. Today, we will take a detailed look at the launch of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, talk about the team and funding of Sandfall Interactive, and discuss the factors contributing to the game's success.
Contents:
- The Sandfall Interactive Team: 32 People, One Dog, and Drama from Nowhere
- Funding Expedition 33: Investors, Grants, and Publisher Assistance
- Sales, Revenue, Platform Distribution, and Other Metrics for Expedition 33
- Factors for Success of Expedition 33: Is This Case Applicable to the Rest of the Industry?
The Sandfall Interactive Team: 32 People, One Dog, and Drama from Nowhere
The main face and ideologist of Sandfall Interactive is Guillaume Broche. He started his journey in the industry a little over 10 years ago as an assistant creative director for Might & Magic: Heroes VII. From 2017-2019, as part of Ubisoft's graduate program, he worked as an assistant producer on games Ghost Recon: Breakpoint and The Division 2, and then spent a year as a brand manager and narrative lead for the Might & Magic series.
While still at Ubisoft, Broche began developing the idea for his own project. In an interview with the BBC, he admitted that at the start of the pandemic, he became "bored with work" and wanted to pursue something different. In 2020, he decided to leave the ranks of the French publisher to found his own studio.
At Sandfall, Broche holds the positions of CEO and creative director. Besides him, the company later gained two more founders:
- Technical director and lead programmer Tom Guillermin, who worked for four years at Ubisoft as a gameplay programmer on Ghost Recon: Wildlands (only for DLC), Breakpoint, The Division 2, and Beyond Good and Evil 2;
- COO and production director François Meurisse, who had no experience in the gaming industry but worked for several years at Marcel, a French private transport service.
From left to right: Guillaume Broche, Tom Guillermin, François Meurisse (photo: Sandfall Interactive)
Until April 2021, Sandfall's staff consisted of only six people. By spring 2022, the team expanded to 15 employees, and by February 2024, it grew to 25.
According to the official website, the studio currently employs 32 people and one dog named Monoko (one of the characters in Clair Obscur is named after her).
Many developers at Sandfall Interactive are newcomers in the industry. Broche personally found some key team members on Reddit, forums, and other platforms. This is how several individuals joined the studio and made invaluable contributions to the success of Expedition 33.
Among them:
