Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has been on a tear lately. The French RPG, known for its gorgeous visuals, turn-based gameplay, and compelling narrative, swept the Game of the Year Awards, with a record eight wins and 12 nominations.
Now, Clair Obscur has set yet another record: It's surpassed Elden Ring as the most award-winning video game of all time.
There's no official body that tracks total wins in game awards, nor an official list of what counts toward the totals. (For instance, do you count Mashable's guide to the best video games of 2025? Spoiler alert: Clair Obscur only earned an honorable mention from our team.) However, fans have been closely tracking wins and losses at the ResetEra forum, and the evidence is clear: Clair Obscur now has more game of the year wins than any other game, topping previous record holders like Elden Ring.
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In years past, Elden Ring collected 435 GOTY wins; The Last of Us Part II earned 326; and Baldur's Gate III got 288. When Wccftech released its list of the best games of the year this week, Clair Obscur surpassed Elden Ring's total with 436 wins and counting.
That's right — there are still plenty of game awards yet to be announced. Per our colleagues at IGN, Clair Obscur can still pick up even more awards at the BAFTAs, DICE, and GDC Awards.
Clair Obscur likely would have reached this record sooner had it not been for a controversial snub at the Indie Game Awards, which takes a hard line against the use of generative AI. French studio Sandfall Entertainment was accused of using generative AI to create background textures, such as posters that appeared on a street lamp, claims that Sandfall Interactive denied.
Considering that generative AI is now a standard tool used by the vast majority of computer programmers, it seems extremely unlikely that no AI was used in the development of other popular video games. However, the Indie Game Awards stripped Sandfall Interactive and Clair Obscur of their Game of the Year and Debut Game awards.
While some video game players have also taken a hard line against the use of generative AI in game development, it's not clear that the average gamer cares. For instance, Arc Raiders faced fierce criticism for its use of generative AI back in November, and yet by January, it had become a hugely successful best-seller.
Controversies aside, Clair Obscur seems poised to pick up even more GOTY wins in the months ahead, setting a new high bar for critically acclaimed video games.
Topics Gaming Video Games
Timothy Beck Werth is the Tech Editor at Mashable, where he leads coverage and assignments for the Tech and Shopping verticals. Tim has over 15 years of experience as a journalist and editor, and he has particular experience covering and testing consumer technology, smart home gadgets, and men’s grooming and style products. Previously, he was the Managing Editor and then Site Director of SPY.com, a men's product review and lifestyle website. As a writer for GQ, he covered everything from bull-riding competitions to the best Legos for adults, and he’s also contributed to publications such as The Daily Beast, Gear Patrol, and The Awl.
Tim studied print journalism at the University of Southern California. He currently splits his time between Brooklyn, NY and Charleston, SC. He's currently working on his second novel, a science-fiction book.
