Expedition 33 devs had to "up our game" after Lies of P left studio CEO stunned

While one is a bruising cousin of Dark Souls, and the other is a strategic, turn-based affair, there's a lot of shared inspiration and visual cues between 2023's excellent Lies of P and this year's GOTY frontrunner, Clair Obscur Expedition 33. Both lean on the Belle Époque era, a period in French history where architecture, art, and technology all rose to an expressive prominence. In a conversation between Lies of P's game director Choi Ji-won, and Sandfall Interactive's CEO Guillaume Broche, the latter admits that the studio had to "up our game" after playing Lies of P, and that the response to the game "validated" what it was trying to achieve with Expedition 33.

It immediately established itself as one of the best turn-based RPGs ever made, and as a result, Expedition 33 feels like it's leading the GOTY charge as we rapidly approach awards season. With a lot of extremely healthy competition from games like Blue Prince and, of course, Hollow Knight Silksong, it might not be the Baldur's Gate 3-style sweep we saw a couple of years ago, but I'd be surprised if it didn't emerge from all those ceremonies with plenty of silverware.

While it's sensational combat system, soaring soundtrack, and epic storytelling are main pillars propping up its success, so too is Expedition 33's visual beauty and depiction of French culture. However, when Lies of P broke onto the scene during Expedition 33's development, Broche (who is also the game's creative director) says he was blown away by Round8 Studios' interpretation of the Belle Époque aesthetic.

"We had the same way of thinking, like 'Belle Époque is kind of unique, it's not explored that much in games,'" he says in a new interview alongside Ji-won. "And when I played Lies of P I was like 'Wow, ok, this looks absolutely stunning, so we have to up our game first.' And really, the thing that struck me the most was Hotel Krat. Because we also have a manor in [Expedition 33], and when I arrived in Hotel Krat, I was like 'This is exactly what we have in our game!'

When [Lies of P] came out, the manor, at this point in development, was still the hub of the game. We didn't have the camp yet. And Hotel Krat is the hub of [Lies of P], and we also had a [record] player and there's a [record] player in Hotel Krat, and I was like 'People will think we have copied!'"

While Lies of P's release may have given Sandfall a slight case of the jitters, due to its gorgeous visuals and environments, Broche also explains how its success was encouraging for the studio. "I was really happy to see that it looked great, and also that people responded very positively to Lies of P and the art style and everything, and it kind of validated that we were going on the right path," he says. Broche later confesses to having "played it for hundreds of hours," such is his admiration for Round8's game.

On the other side of the coin, Ji-won reflects on one aspect of Lies of P he wishes was approached with more bravery and confidence, in the wake of Expedition 33.

"I felt that we should've been more daring in using the architectural and cultural styles that represent Belle Époque," he admits. "When I saw how [Sandfall] audaciously used iconic French landmarks - a ruined Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Place de la Concorde - I felt a sense of lingering regret, thinking 'We should've been bolder.'

"The reason we didn't go further was a concern about offending people in France, so we were more conservative," Ji-won adds, before Broche jokes that some cultural ideas (such as Expedition 33's "baguette outfits") would probably only be appropriate if French people executed them.

The entire conversation is an intriguing one, and there's loads of mutual respect between Ji-won and Broche. The two seem proud that the two games share some DNA when it comes to their setting and aesthetic, despite their very different approaches to gameplay.

If you're a big Lies of P fan, be sure to check out more of the best soulslikes on PC right now. If you just love gripping narratives and plot twists that give you whiplash, check out some of the best story games.

Is Expedition 33 your frontrunner for Game of the Year? If so, come and let us know why in the PCGamesN Discord server, or if not, make a case for your current favorite.