Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 feels like a love letter to JRPGs—and that’s because it pretty much is. Director Guillaume Broche has a long-lasting history with the genre, including an attempt to play Final Fantasy 8 as a child, even before he could read fully.

In a recent interview with The Washington Post, Guillaume shared some of his earliest gaming recollections, saying: > “[FF8] came out at a time where my brother and I could barely read.”

“We have fond memories of struggling against the first boss. We couldn’t beat him because we couldn’t read; all we knew how to do was just auto-attack.”

Guillaume is 33 years old now, which means he was only around 7 when the game was released. He and his brother faced their challenges with games like RPGs that involved reams of text, often resulting in trial and error gameplay.

Reflecting on his directorial journey, he states, > “It goes both ways, because when we go to Japan as French developers, we show them this distorted version of Paris, and we catch their attention because they are influenced by French culture.”

His game is undoubtedly shaped by his experiences, as can be seen in the various gameplay aspects that resonate with classic RPG influences. In his words, > “There is a lot of joy and sincerity in how we made the game, and I think it’s something players can connect with … We are emptied out. There is all of us in the game, nothing left.”

Image Credit: Kepler / Sandfall Interactive