In an era where video game budgets are spiraling out of control—often hitting $200 million or more—we have been told that this is just the “cost of doing business.” We were told that photorealistic graphics, hours of voice acting, and smooth combat require the GDP of a small nation to produce. Well, Sandfall Interactive just proved that to be a complete lie.
Following a massive night at The Game Awards, where Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 took home major accolades, the developers dropped a bombshell that has the entire industry reeling. In a recent interview, Sandfall CEO Guillaume Broche revealed that their stunning turn-based RPG was made for less than $10 million. No, that is not a typo. For the price of a single Marvel movie’s catering budget, they built one of the most visually arresting games of the generation.
David vs. The AAA Goliaths
To truly understand how insane this figure is, you have to look at the competition. Modern AAA development has become a bloat-fest of spending. We recently learned that Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 cost Insomniac roughly $300 million to make. Call of Duty budgets are rumored to be pushing towards a billion dollars over their lifecycles.
Yet, here is Expedition 33, standing toe-to-toe with them in the “Best Visuals” and “Game of the Year” conversations. It runs on Unreal Engine 5, features high-fidelity motion capture, and has a combat system that looks smoother than games with ten times the staff. It begs the question: Where is all that money going in AAA studios? Sandfall has exposed the inefficiency of the “throw money at the problem” mindset.
The Budget Breakdown Comparison
| Game Title | Estimated Budget | Team Size |
|---|---|---|
| Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 | <$10 Million | ~30 Core Devs |
| Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 | $300 Million | 300+ Devs |
| The Last of Us Part II | $220 Million | 2,000+ (w/ outsourcing) |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | $400 Million+ | 500+ Devs |
How Did They Do It?
So, how do you make a champagne game on a beer budget? According to Broche, it wasn’t about crunch or cutting corners—it was about being smarter than everyone else. Sandfall Interactive didn’t try to be Ubisoft. They didn’t try to build a 100-hour open world filled with fetch quests and empty space.
- Rejecting Open World Bloat: Instead of a seamless, massive open world that requires thousands of artists to detail, the game uses a stylized “miniature” overworld map to connect detailed linear levels. This saved millions in asset creation.
- Smart Outsourcing: The team kept the core creative vision in-house with about 30 people but outsourced labor-intensive tasks like combat animations to a specialized team in Korea.
- Technology Leverage: They leaned heavily into the tools provided by Unreal Engine 5, allowing a small team to achieve lighting and textures that used to require custom engines.
- Focused Scope: Broche admitted that having “unlimited resources” might have made the game worse. Constraints forced them to focus only on what mattered: the combat, the story, and the art. No padding.
“We have the tech now to make those games with a relatively small team,” Broche told reporters. “Games like this are coming. We are lucky to be early.”
The End of the $70 Bloat?
This revelation is a wake-up call for gamers and investors alike. For years, we’ve justified paying $70 (or more) for games because “they are so expensive to make.” Clair Obscur proves that high fidelity doesn’t have to cost the Earth. It suggests that the future of gaming might not be 1,000-person teams making one game every decade, but smaller, agile “AA” studios producing masterpieces for a fraction of the cost.
If Sandfall can deliver a GOTY contender for $10 million, what excuse does the rest of the industry have?
Conclusion
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is more than just a great RPG; it is a disruptor. By peeling back the curtain on its budget, Sandfall Interactive has shown that creativity and scope management beat raw spending power every time. As we look toward 2026, let’s hope more studios take note: we don’t need bigger budgets; we need better ideas.
FAQs
What was the budget for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33?
Sandfall Interactive confirmed the budget was less than $10 million.
Who developed Clair Obscur?
The game was developed by Sandfall Interactive, a French studio founded in 2020.
Is Clair Obscur an indie game?
It blurs the line. While developed by a small independent team (approx. 30 people), it had publishing support from Kepler Interactive, placing it firmly in the “Triple-I” or “AA” category.
What engine does the game use?
It runs on Unreal Engine 5, utilizing advanced features like Nanite and Lumen to achieve high-quality visuals with a small team.
Why was the budget so low compared to other games?
The team kept their staff size small, outsourced specific tasks like animation, and deliberately avoided expensive open-world mechanics in favor of detailed linear environments.