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The game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 isn't just an impressive GOTY contender, it’s also a massive commercial success. Studio the development team along with publisher their publishing partner revealed that this title surpassed 5 million units sold, and that’s even with it being a launch-day addition on Xbox Game Pass.

The game's performance was a surprise to Sandfall. “I was strongly believing that we'd create a solid title that would meet reasonable commercial success,” a senior team member stated.

A technical director pointed out that Clair Obscur’s critical score, now standing at 93, came as “maybe the biggest shock to the team relative to what we anticipated and what the reality of the field was. When the score released all staff members celebrated excitedly. It felt absolutely wild.”

That success resulted in Sandfall developing a complimentary expansion for the title including novel settings, adversaries, and boss fights, which they said would be out sometime soon.

However, while the game is growing, it's unlikely they'll hire extensively. We've built an excellent group under clear creative leadership with a clear direction for our work and future concepts. Our goal is to maintain the human scale that worked for this game then develop large projects one by one,” the producer noted.

The studio's scale sparked a storm of discussion following launch. Some developers, including renowned designers, considered the development group as the “ideal” for game development. Although the team is and was indeed a small team next to major studios, checking the game's credits reveals many individuals participated; Sandfall partnered with overseas animators for animation work, for example.

“We will hire slightly more definitely should there be an increase in development in upcoming years,” they said. “However, I envision essentially a craft studio with a small number of exceptionally gifted creators that create a work of art together.” He noted that the studio's philosophy as a company “focuses on preserving the key advantages that led to this accomplishment from the start.”

Although it's not the right time to say specifically regarding upcoming titles — rest assured, efforts were made — the developers understand what’s at its core. “The turn-based aspect, is integral to our identity of this project,” the lead programmer said. “It's still premature to announce our next interests, but it's important also to adhere to the DNA of studio with [a] strong narrative universe and engaging mechanics that excites us.”

The developer noted that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 began with their director “work[ing] on his dream game. It is hoped that philosophy we can continue in coming projects.”