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[ArtHands]

Great to see this game selling well

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is selling more than twice as fast as other JRPGs on PC, analyst says – here's why

Sandfall Interactive's Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has captivated fans of Japanese RPGs.

www.gamesindustry.biz

According to Alinea Analytics' data, the game has sold more than 785,000 copies on Steam in its first week – more than twice the sales of any recent comparable games in the Japanese RPG style, including last year's acclaimed Atlus title, Metaphor Re:Fantazio.

According to Alinea Analytics' data, Expedition 33 has also sold more than 350,000 copies on PlayStation. Elliott says the game has more than 1.5 million wishlists on Steam, setting it up well for a long tail.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is selling faster than JRPGs from iconic studios, but the Oblivion Remaster might have stolen a bit of its thunder

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a certified hit, an all-time JRPG great, and another early contender for game of the year. Expedition 33 has now sold over a million copies across Steam and PlayStation alone, with over 785K on Steam and over 350K on PlayStation consoles.

alineaanalytics.com

Expedition 33 has now sold over a million copies across Steam and PlayStation alone, with over 785K on Steam and over 350K on PlayStation consoles.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Amazed to see it doing these numbers on PC

Playstation is doing rookie numbers by comparison, they need to pump those numbers up

Let me guess, zero copies sold on Xbox because it's on Gamepass lol

 

[Gaiff]

Is this reliable data or just guesswork? The other thread says the players on PS5 were 30% and Steam 25%. This goes directly against this.

Edit: The other data doesn't include Asia. This could be the reason for the difference.

 

[LordOcidax]

Cmon Playstation users, talk with your wallets…

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

i missed your threads

 

[TintoConCasera]

twice the sales of any recent comparable games in the Japanese RPG style

Crazy stuff. I wonder if this means we'll be seeing more euro-jrpgs from other devs trying to get a slice of the cake.

 

[demented waffle]

Is this reliable data or just guesswork? The other thread says the players on PS5 were 30% and Steam 25%. This goes directly against this.

From the article in the other thread:

The data covers major European markets, US, Canada, Australia and the UK. It tracks all players from each game's launch until Sunday, April 27. Oblivion launched on Tuesday, April 22, whereas Expedition 33 released on Thursday, April 24.

https://www.thegamebusiness.com/p/expedition-33-publisher-elder-scrolls

 

[GHG]

I was wondering where ArtHands thou with all the news yesterday.

Glad to see you back doing what you do best my friend.

 

[Mr Moose]

Alinea Analytics

Who?.gif

From the article in the other thread:



https://www.thegamebusiness.com/p/expedition-33-publisher-elder-scrolls

Wrong source. That's Ampere.

 

[Gaiff]

From the article in the other thread:



https://www.thegamebusiness.com/p/expedition-33-publisher-elder-scrolls

Oh, so the other thread doesn't cover Asia, where China, the second or even first biggest PC market is? This might explain the discrepancy, but I'm still not sure if those guys are reliable.

 

[Ozriel]

Is this reliable data or just guesswork? The other thread says the players on PS5 were 30% and Steam 25%. This goes directly against this.

The fine print for that data source said it didn't have data from China, Japan and some other Asian countries.

That's a massive asterisk, since so much of the Steam userbase is in China. And you'd expect Japanese PC players to take to the game too

 

[demented waffle]

Oh, so the other thread doesn't cover Asia, where China, the second or even first biggest PC market is?

Correct. That and only covers a few days.

 

[demented waffle]

Who?.gif
Wrong source. That's Ampere.

I know. I was quoting when he asked about the other thread. Ampere is the other thread's source.

 

[ArtHands]

i missed your threads

sorry, was busy with too many PC games.

 

[DryvBy]

Is this reliable data or just guesswork? The other thread says the players on PS5 were 30% and Steam 25%. This goes directly against this.

Yeah, this doesn't make sense unless Steam users only collect digital games instead of of play them.

I'm going to wait until the devs give data like they did previously

 

[Loomy]

Yeah, this doesn't make sense unless Steam users only collect digital games instead of of play them.

Have you met Steam users?

 

[Miyazaki’s Slave]

Let me guess, zero copies sold on Xbox because it's on Gamepass lol

I picked up the XSX version...so it's at least one sale (but I also bought physical on PS5 and snagged a steam copy so I probably cancel out the xbox purchase or something.)

 

[rofif]

They don't know anything

 

[Gaiff]

They don't know anything

Don't like the results?

 

[rofif]

Don't like the results?

I don't care.
But they don't know anything.
The only thing we know is 1million tweet.
Every other thing is taking steamdb estimates. There are no other numbers. Nobodyh knows consoles physical and digital numbers.

They just took some random number.
This is steamdb estimations which at least make some sense.

 

[yogaflame]

Wait for Circana and Vgchart

 

[Unknown Soldier]

I picked up the XSX version...so it's at least one sale (but I also bought physical on PS5 and snagged a steam copy so I probably cancel out the xbox purchase or something.)

I'm pretty sure people who buy 3 copies of a game at once are extremely rare outliers so yeah you might be the only sale on Xbox

 

[Topher]

Eh....yeah...something ain't adding up.

"Xbox was the No.1 platform for both games because of that Game Pass inclusion. 45% of Expedition 33 players were on Xbox, while 47% of Oblivion players were on Microsoft's platform.

Things differ after that. The second-best platform for Expedition 33 was PlayStation, with 30% of players on that console. The game is a Japanese-style RPG akin to games like Final Fantasy, which typically do well on Sony formats. 25% of Expedition 33 players were on Steam, Ampere states."

Thread 'Ampere: Xbox #1 platform for EX33 and Oblivion'

May 1, 2025

Expedition 33 publisher: "Elder Scrolls: Oblivion didn’t seem to harm us at all"

35% of Expedition 33 players also played the Elder Scrolls remaster | Publisher Kepler hails Xbox

www.thegamebusiness.com

Xbox was the No.1 platform for both games because of that Game Pass inclusion. 45% of Expedition 33 players were on Xbox, while 47% of Oblivion players were on Microsoft's platform.

Things differ after that. The second-best platform for Expedition 33 was PlayStation, with 30% of players on that console. The game is a Japanese-style RPG akin to games like Final Fantasy, which typically do well on Sony formats. 25% of Expedition 33 players were on Steam, Ampere states.

Meanwhile, Steam was the No.2 platform...

• BennyBlanco
• Replies: 209
• Forum: Gaming Discussion

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Vgchart

 

[Fake]

I still don't get why sometimes game analytics say numbers and sometimes don't...


Really hate this behavior. Why get paid for guessing numbers, this is pretty much fanboy territory.

 

[Last Hearth]

From the article in the other thread:



https://www.thegamebusiness.com/p/expedition-33-publisher-elder-scrolls

So it doesn't include numbers from any Asian country?

 

[BennyBlanco]

I don't care.

Yes you do. You accused Circana of lying about MHW sales because you didn't like the way it turned out. Maybe the most absurd thing Ive ever seen on this website, and Ive seen a man make multiple bets about eating his own cum here.

 

[rofif]

Yes you do. You accused Circana of lying about MHW sales because you didn't like the way it turned out. Maybe the most absurd thing Ive ever seen on this website, and Ive seen a man make multiple bets about eating his own cum here.

Because they are all a bunch of clickbaiters who don't have real numbers.
You are eating these articles up without any fact checking.
At least circana is a statistical company but they still didn't had direct numbers and there is no way to estimate this stuff. You only can do that on steam... based on ccu which makes barely any sense anyway.

 

[Gaiff]

Eh....yeah...something ain't adding up.

"Xbox was the No.1 platform for both games because of that Game Pass inclusion. 45% of Expedition 33 players were on Xbox, while 47% of Oblivion players were on Microsoft's platform.

Things differ after that. The second-best platform for Expedition 33 was PlayStation, with 30% of players on that console. The game is a Japanese-style RPG akin to games like Final Fantasy, which typically do well on Sony formats. 25% of Expedition 33 players were on Steam, Ampere states."

Thread 'Ampere: Xbox #1 platform for EX33 and Oblivion'

May 1, 2025

Expedition 33 publisher: "Elder Scrolls: Oblivion didn’t seem to harm us at all"

35% of Expedition 33 players also played the Elder Scrolls remaster | Publisher Kepler hails Xbox

www.thegamebusiness.com

Xbox was the No.1 platform for both games because of that Game Pass inclusion. 45% of Expedition 33 players were on Xbox, while 47% of Oblivion players were on Microsoft's platform.

Things differ after that. The second-best platform for Expedition 33 was PlayStation, with 30% of players on that console. The game is a Japanese-style RPG akin to games like Final Fantasy, which typically do well on Sony formats. 25% of Expedition 33 players were on Steam, Ampere states.

Meanwhile, Steam was the No.2 platform...

• BennyBlanco
• Replies: 209
• Forum: Gaming Discussion

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No Asian countries in that other report. China alone would probably significantly alter the numbers for PC. Japan would also favor PS5, but not to the same extent China would favor PC.

 

[BennyBlanco]

Because they are all a bunch of clickbaiters who don't have real numbers.
You are eating these articles up without any fact checking.
At least circana is a statistical company but they still didn't had direct numbers and there is no way to estimate this stuff. You only can do that on steam... based on ccu which makes barely any sense anyway.

Circana has real, hard numbers directly from Capcom

 

[ShaiKhulud1989]

Eh....yeah...something ain't adding up.

"Xbox was the No.1 platform for both games because of that Game Pass inclusion. 45% of Expedition 33 players were on Xbox, while 47% of Oblivion players were on Microsoft's platform.

Things differ after that. The second-best platform for Expedition 33 was PlayStation, with 30% of players on that console. The game is a Japanese-style RPG akin to games like Final Fantasy, which typically do well on Sony formats. 25% of Expedition 33 players were on Steam, Ampere states."

Thread 'Ampere: Xbox #1 platform for EX33 and Oblivion'

May 1, 2025

Expedition 33 publisher: "Elder Scrolls: Oblivion didn’t seem to harm us at all"

35% of Expedition 33 players also played the Elder Scrolls remaster | Publisher Kepler hails Xbox

www.thegamebusiness.com

Xbox was the No.1 platform for both games because of that Game Pass inclusion. 45% of Expedition 33 players were on Xbox, while 47% of Oblivion players were on Microsoft's platform.

Things differ after that. The second-best platform for Expedition 33 was PlayStation, with 30% of players on that console. The game is a Japanese-style RPG akin to games like Final Fantasy, which typically do well on Sony formats. 25% of Expedition 33 players were on Steam, Ampere states.

Meanwhile, Steam was the No.2 platform...

• BennyBlanco
• Replies: 209
• Forum: Gaming Discussion

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• 
• 
• 

As always with data when the provider doesn't have the access to raw sales:

 

[TintoConCasera]

multiple bets about eating his own cum

 

[rofif]

Circana has real, hard numbers directly from Capcom

whatever. It has nothing to do with this topic

 

[R3TRO]

Good stuff.

Probably my favorite game this year.

 

[DonkeyPunchJr]

The fine print for that data source said it didn't have data from China, Japan and some other Asian countries.

That's a massive asterisk, since so much of the Steam userbase is in China. And you'd expect Japanese PC players to take to the game too

^ it spiked big time on Thursday, during Golden Week in Japan. And it has been peaking very early in the day which presumably means most of the players are in Asia.

So yeah I can believe the crazy Steam sales #s after taking China + Japan into account.

 

[KungFucius]

Let me guess, zero copies sold on Xbox because it's on Gamepass lol

I look at the Steam sales and am extremely confused why these people don't just play it on Gamepass. Nearly 800k would rather pay 50 bucks for a game instead of playing it for 12. Many must just be fucking hoarders.

 

[Last Hearth]

I look at the Steam sales and am extremely confused why these people don't just play it on Gamepass. Nearly 800k would rather pay 50 bucks for a game instead of playing it for 12. Many must just be fucking hoarders.

Why do people buy books when they can get any book from the library?

 

[reinking]

Since when did comparing Steam and PlayStation become a thing? Have I just ignored that comparison in the past? Either way, good for Sandfall Interactive. I hope they are able to continue their success and create more interesting single player games for both PC and consoles.

 

[Zacfoldor]

 

[DarkstarRising13]

I look at the Steam sales and am extremely confused why these people don't just play it on Gamepass. Nearly 800k would rather pay 50 bucks for a game instead of playing it for 12. Many must just be fucking hoarders.

Or rather, they don't give a shit about a Netflix-like streaming service that Lies of Phil Spencer and his three trillion dollar sugar daddies are trying to push the gaming industry into accepting.

As someone with a PS5 Pro, if this sales ratio is true for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 that 66% of the game's sales are on PC and 33% for PS5, I tip my hat to my PC counterparts for going out of their way to actually buy these games so that the money goes to the developers who make it, as I did and numerous others when we bought the physical (me) or digital versions for the PS5 version. Together with the sales numbers and estimated budget of $35-40 million and thirty-percent cut from Steam and PlayStation, Sandfall Interactive has long since broken even for developing this game.

GamePass barely does anything aside from drawing attention. I'm pretty sure Microsoft only gave them $5 million, and the publishers and developers took it because they knew barely any Xbox gamers would buy the game compared to their PC and PS5 counterparts.

 

[ClosBSAS]

For sony fanboys a pc game doing better than the. Is a big no no. They will call it a fallacy no matter what

 

[TGO]

So there's less (because you have to include digital) then 350K physical copies worldwide and they sold out....
I find that hard to believe given how many copies the distribution centre in one location receives..
Then again...., nah still seems off.

 

[CLW]

If you are a PlayStation owner and haven't bought 6 copies MINIMUM

 

[Arsic]

I look at the Steam sales and am extremely confused why these people don't just play it on Gamepass. Nearly 800k would rather pay 50 bucks for a game instead of playing it for 12. Many must just be fucking hoarders.

Or you know, want to support devs with actual dollars instead of air from Xbox.

Most Steam users hate other store fronts.

On top of that, they want to "own" the title rather than possibly play on gamepass then unsubscribe and not have access anymore.

Different strokes for different folks. I use my gamepass to try out games I'm unsure of or can only play on pc, or run horrendous on console so pc is the only way.

Clair 33 I got on ps5 because it seemed like a no brainer to give these guys money for their hard work.

 

[Guardian Monkey]

Or rather, they don't give a shit about a Netflix-like streaming service that Lies of Phil Spencer and his three trillion dollar sugar daddies are trying to push the gaming industry into accepting.

As someone with a PS5 Pro, if this sales ratio is true for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 that 66% of the game's sales are on PC and 33% for PS5, I tip my hat to my PC counterparts for going out of their way to actually buy these games so that the money goes to the developers who make it, as I did and numerous others when we bought the physical (me) or digital versions for the PS5 version. Together with the sales numbers and estimated budget of $35-40 million and thirty-percent cut from Steam and PlayStation, Sandfall Interactive has long since broken even for developing this game.

GamePass barely does anything aside from drawing attention. I'm pretty sure Microsoft only gave them $5 million, and the publishers and developers took it because they knew barely any Xbox gamers would buy the game compared to their PC and PS5 counterparts.

"I'm pretty sure Microsoft only gave them $5 million"

- Might you be able to share a reference link?

"785K on Steam and over 350K on PlayStation consoles."

-70/30 split just between those two platforms.

"GamePass barely does anything aside from drawing attention. I'm pretty sure Microsoft only gave them $5 million, and the publishers and developers took it because they knew barely any Xbox gamers would buy the game compared to their PC and PS5 counterparts."

- Over 1.3 million people have played the game on Xbox.

Ah yes, a masterclass in unbiased analysis and clearly no favoritism here at all. Are there James Sawyer Ford replacement tryouts on NeoGAF that I was unaware of?

 

[GHG]

I look at the Steam sales and am extremely confused why these people don't just play it on Gamepass. Nearly 800k would rather pay 50 bucks for a game instead of playing it for 12. Many must just be fucking hoarders.

The same thing can be said for people who decide to throw money at gamepass and will have nothing to show for it the moment they stop doing so. Even worse still when some of those people will buy DLC for games that they only have access to via gamepass, and even games that aren't guaranteed to stay on the service forever.

But good thing people are happy to exercise the various options available to them huh?

 

[ArtHands]

Is there a reason why people think this is a questionable source now?

 

[Dynasty8]

I am honestly baffled. A small team of developers from France, some who are new to the industry, made a modern day "Japanese" RPG masterpiece that has finally dethroned Chrono Trigger for me after 30 years...

I wish the same passion was shared among Square Enix, but their heads are so far up their asses they are unable to do that.

SandFall should never even consider being bought out. They just made millions of new fans who'll buy their next project day one.

 

[calico]

As mentioned above, the discrepancy with the player split from the earlier article is likely explained by that one apparently not including Asia in the data.

If you look at the time of day this game peaks on Steam (~14:00 UTC), it is skewing towards Asia (at least on PC).

The split in this thread's title may or may not be accurate, but I don't think it contradicts the other article.

 

[Chukhopops]

GamePass barely does anything aside from drawing attention. I'm pretty sure Microsoft only gave them $5 million, and the publishers and developers took it because they knew barely any Xbox gamers would buy the game compared to their PC and PS5 counterparts.

Bullshit estimates obviously, but even if MS had paid zero they featured the game in their June showcase last year which was worth a lot for a new publisher and franchise.

 

[nial]

^ it spiked big time on Thursday, during Golden Week in Japan. And it has been peaking very early in the day which presumably means most of the players are in Asia.

So yeah I can believe the crazy Steam sales #s after taking China + Japan into account.

At Friday, May 3rd at 0:00 AM in Japan, you say...? Golden Week started 3 days prior, I don't see how this spike correlates to Japan specifically in any way.