Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Stripped of Indie Game Awards Over AI Usage
- Sagar Mankar
- 17 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has been disqualified from the Indie Game Awards 2025 after the developer confirmed using generative AI during production.
The decision by Six One Indie, the organization behind the awards ceremony, comes despite the game's massive success at The Game Awards 2025, where it set a record with nine wins.
The controversy started when an old interview with François Meurisse, COO and Production Director of Sandfall Interactive, went viral, in which he acknowledged the studio’s use of AI.
As highlighted by journalist Gene Park on X on December 18, the same day as the Indie Game Awards premiere, Meurisse told El País in a July interview: "We use some AI, but not much. The key is that we were very clear about what we wanted to do and what to invest in. And, of course, technology has allowed us to do things that were unthinkable a short time ago."
According to the Indie Game Awards, Sandfall Interactive had initially agreed during the nomination submission process that no generative AI was used in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's development. This confirmation directly contradicted their later admission, leading to the disqualification. As mentioned in its FAQ, Six One Indie maintains a strict policy against generative AI use, and the timing of the developer's statement left them with little choice but to retract the awards.
The two honors originally given to Clair Obscur have now been redistributed to the runner-up titles. Sorry We're Closed received the Debut Game award, while Blue Prince took home the Game of the Year prize. Developers à la mode games and Dogubomb were invited to record acceptance speeches that will likely be published in early 2026.
The broader gaming industry finds itself at a crossroads regarding AI implementation in development. Recent discussions have intensified following Larian Studios' announcement about using AI during the conceptual phase of their upcoming game Divinity. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 Director Daniel Vávra expressed support for this approach, while Bruce Staley, co-director of The Last of Us, has voiced opposition to AI-generated game art.
Despite the Indie Game Awards disqualification, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 continues to hold its record-breaking achievement at The Game Awards 2025. The title secured nine victories from twelve nominations, including Game of the Year, Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Art Direction, Best Music and Score, Best Performance for Jennifer English, Best Role Playing Game, Best Independent Game, and Best Debut Indie Game.