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Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has officially been disqualified from the “Indie Game Awards 2025”. Developer Sandfall Interactive confirmed the use of Generative AI during the game’s development. Consequently, Six One Indie, the awards’ creators, stripped the title of its wins.
The disqualification centres on a breach of trust. During the nomination process, Sandfall agreed that no generative AI was used. However, on December 18, the day of the showcase, producer Francois Meurisse confirmed the opposite. The team used AI tools during the development process.
Immediately, Six One Indie took a hard stance. They retracted the game’s two awards. Sorry We’re Closed (by à la mode games) now takes the “Debut Game” award. Meanwhile, Blue Prince (by Dogubomb) claims the “Game of the Year” title. Acceptance speeches from the new winners will likely be published in early 2026.
Clair Obscur: The “Placeholder” Defence
Sandfall Interactive attempted to clarify the situation. They stated the AI-generated assets were merely placeholders. The developers eventually patched these assets out of the final game. Furthermore, the studio insists they firmly oppose “creative” AI replacing human-made art.
Nevertheless, the admission violated the specific rules of the Indie Game Awards. Six One Indie maintained that the initial agreement was broken. Therefore, the game remains ineligible.
A Record-Breaking Paradox
This disqualification creates a massive contradiction in the gaming industry. Despite the controversy, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 dominated “The Game Awards (TGA) 2025“. The game set a new record by winning 9 total awards from 12 nominations.
The mainstream industry celebrated the title, handing it major accolades, including:
- Game of the Year
- Best Game Direction
- Best Narrative
- Best Art Direction
- Best Music and Score (Lorien Testard)
- Best Performance (Jennifer English)
- Best Role-Playing Game
- Best Independent Game
- Best Debut Indie Game
The Industry Divide
This incident highlights a growing fracture within game development. The industry is currently split on AI integration. For instance, Larian Studios recently faced criticism for AI use in their upcoming Divinity game.
Some veterans, like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 Director Daniel Vávra, support AI in the conceptual phase. Conversely, others like The Last of Us co-director Bruce Staley align with Six One Indie. They strictly oppose AI use in game art creation.
The gaming world is at a crossroads. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 stands as a prime example of this confusion. It won big at one show while being disqualified from another for the exact same technology.
