I Don’t Want Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 to Win The Game Awards 2025

So, recently the nominees for 2025’s Game Awards were announced and it’s very, very apparent who is most likely to take home multiple awards on the night: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Now, I’m not hating on the game. I haven’t played it myself but I am aware it is a masterpiece of gameplay and narrative that shows how amazing videogames as an art form can be.

Games CAN be art!

It’s a beautiful tale about loss and grief, mixed in with a combat system that blurs the line between turn-based and real-time action. However, seeing it in competition with games like BALL x PIT and Blue Prince for Best Independent Game and it feels like they’re being fed to the wolves. And it’s a pattern I see repeated with every year that passes.

It becomes very apparent what games Geoff Keighley and his committee of (presumably) gamers really want to win at least something. The Last of Us Part II, ELDEN RING, Baldur's Gate 3, all amazing games in their own right, yet it feels bad every time I see them being nominated for several categories at once when there are games I feel need or deserve a bigger spotlight. Say what you will about the Awards, and how Keighley can be a tool, but having a trophy to show the time and effort given into their game would be a massive honour that will stick with you for life.

Respect the Ring

Look, I’m still bitter that Marvel's Spider-Man got snubbed twice but I’m even more bitter that Dispatch got it so much worse. One nomination out of the many categories, including Best Narrative, and no VAs in Best Performance. I’m cheering for Erika Ishii, though. I love them on Dropout and they outright murder their role in Ghost of Yōtei.

But… if these top contenders were excluded, people would definitely find it extremely strange and raise a stink about it. If Expedition 33 was left out of Best Role Playing Game or Best Score and Music, it feels weird because games like it deserve those spots. Plus, it does still fall under the definition of being an “indie game”, and Kepler Interactive's usual output are games like Sifu, Bionic Bay, and Cat Quest III. When there’s a sweep on the night, there’s a big reason why it got nominated for so many categories. It’s a Morton’s Fork situation where no matter what, someone is going to get mad… but isn’t that just what the internet is——what consuming media has become in general?

Games like Silksong deserve their spotlight.

You want your favourites to win and get the praise they deserve, read and hear people sing about how great your favourite game is, but there will always be people calling it mid. To quote Jacksfilms: “The internet is never happy, will never be happy, and will die angry.” With all that being said, who cares? It’s just great to see such titles as Absolum and Hollow Knight: Silksong on a big fancy stage, while getting to see trailers for stuff coming out in the future… or shadowdrops in two minutes.

The Game Awards, as Keighley puts it, are about celebrating the hard work of developers and showing the results of their efforts. 2025 has been a rough year for many people around the world and games have helped them cope with that. Ultimately, I don’t want Clair Obscur to win for selfish, pointless reasons.

Look, I only watch the Game Awards for the trailers. KH4 news, any day now!

So, for a few hours, let’s talk about why we love these games instead of fighting amongst each other. This year is stacked with amazing titles, so clap politely for when Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 inevitably wins Game of the Year on the 11th of December. And hey, there’s always GameGrin’s Game of the Year.