Image: Push Square
It’s no secret that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 creative director Guillaume Broche is a huge fan of Japanese RPGs — but the Sandfall Interactive CEO has championed one specific title in a new interview.
“Persona 5 in particular is what I consider the best game in the world when it comes to UI and combat visuals,” says Broche, speaking to Japanese publication Denfaminicogamer (as translated by Automaton).
He continues: “The way the camera shifts dramatically with each action from the player, making it feel like you’re watching a movie, left a huge impression on me.”
And it’s hard to argue, isn’t it? Atlus has been dishing out some of the most artistically stunning titles of the last couple of decades, and we’d probably agree that Persona 5 is the best of the bunch in terms of design identity. Although having said that, the more recent Persona 3 Reload and Metaphor: ReFantazio certainly give it a run for its money.
If you’ve played Clair Obscur, you’ll have no doubt noticed the inspiration — especially in the way that the combat camera shifts depending on your selected actions. But then Broche points out that he’s never looking to just lift ideas from other games and repurpose them.
“In the West, you sometimes see games that just copy aspects of popular titles on a surface-level, aiming to recreate their success. However, this only leads to inferior copies — and that was exactly the kind of game I wanted to avoid making,” he explains.
Given how artistically impressive Clair Obscur is, and given how respect Broche has for all-timers like Persona 5, we’re just going to go on record and say that the team at Sandfall Interactive clear has impeccable taste. It’ll be very interesting to see what the studio’s next game looks like.
What do you think of Broche’s comments? Do you think the inspiration is clear to see in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33? Remember to take your turn in the comments section below.
[source news.denfaminicogamer.jp, via automaton-media.com]
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Robert (or Rob if you’re lazy) is an assistant editor of Push Square, and has been a fan of PlayStation since the 90s, when Tekken 2 introduced him to the incredible world of video games. He still takes his fighting games seriously, but RPGs are his true passion. The Witcher, Persona, Dragon Quest, Mass Effect, Final Fantasy, Trails, Tales — he’s played ’em all. A little too much, some might say.