Clair Obscur wins nine at The Game Awards 2025

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 dominated The Game Awards on Thursday night (December 11) in Los Angeles, winning game of the year and taking nine trophies overall in what multiple outlets described as a record-breaking haul. 

The French-developed role-playing game was nominated in 12 categories and won nine, including Best Narrative, Best Score and Music, and Best Performance. 

It beat Death Stranding 2, Nintendo platformer Donkey Kong Bananza, indie titles Hollow Knight: Silksong and Hades II, and the medieval adventure Kingdom Come: Deliverance II to secure the top prize. 

Set in a world where a supernatural figure known as “The Paintress” prevents people from living past a certain age, the game follows a group of adventurers seeking to destroy her. Reviewers and commentators praised its emotional storytelling and old-school, turn-based combat. 

Accepting the game of the year award, director Guillaume Broche thanked his team and paid tribute to what he called the industry’s “unsung heroes” — creators of online tutorials that helped the studio build the game. 

Composer Lorien Testard won best score and music, while Jennifer English took best performance for her role as Maelle, beating co-stars Charlie Cox and Ben Starr. In her speech, English dedicated the award to neurodivergent viewers. 

Clair Obscur missed out in two categories it was up for: Battlefield 6 won best audio design, while the open-world action RPG Wuthering Waves took the fan-voted Player’s Voice award. Elsewhere, Donkey Kong Bananza won best family game and Arc Raiders claimed best multiplayer, while Hollow Knight: Silksong was named best action-adventure. 

The ceremony — hosted by Geoff Keighley and often described as the “Oscars of gaming” — also served as a showcase for upcoming releases. Viewers saw announcements including two new Tomb Raider projects, Control Resonant, and a new Star Wars role-playing game, alongside other trailers and reveals. 

The event also honoured Girls Make Games with the Game Changer award for its work encouraging girls and young women to pursue careers in gaming.