In less than a year since its release, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has become almost legendary. Breaking all records for Game of the Year awards, the role-playing game developed by Sandfall Interactive has enjoyed immense popularity thanks to its classic JRPG gameplay and incredible art direction.
Funnily enough, that art direction is so convincing that it recently triggered a national antiquities investigation in the Middle East.
"This can't be for real, my Expedition Journal that comes with the Monolith Set got detained by customs for being 'possibly ancient", reported Reddit user Ahmed15252 on the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 subreddit. "Customs opened the package and decided the art book looked a bit too ancient. You know… drawings, symbols, vibes, Result: The book has been officially sent to the Iraqi Museum / Technical Committee to confirm that it is in fact a modern video game art book and not a newly discovered lost artifact."
The user ended their story with a touch of irony: “10/10 experience will definitely accidentally import history again.” While many critics have argued that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 deserves to be in a museum, no one expected it to happen via a customs seizure.
Iraq may have mistaken it for history, but France has officially declared it art. Just last week, the developers at Sandfall Interactive were named Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, receiving France's highest cultural honor. French Minister of Culture Rachida Dati presented the team with an "exceptional decoration for an exceptional success," highlighting a level of prestige rarely seen in the video game industry.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
