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Much has been said about the unconventional way the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 team came together, but perhaps the biggest surprise remains the gaming history of its lead writer - who "did not play" any games before joining Sandfall Interactive.
Speaking to Lits Play about the writing process of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, lead writer Jennifer Svedberg-Yen admitted that "before this, I did not play any video games." That wasn't necessarily a conscious choice, but instead a combination of the cultural reality of being the oldest child "in a very strict Chinese household" and the cost of video games at that time.
While her youngest brother did eventually get his own console, Svedberg-Yen says she "went to the library and [...] read books," but before joining Sandfall, her only real exposure to gaming was tabletop RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons. It was only after joining Sandfall that she decided "'Ok, I better start looking into what this is, I gotta do my homework."
Helped along by her husband, Svedberg-Yen says her very first foray into gaming was the Borderlands series. Now, however, the couple have "two TVs, two PlayStations, we sit side by side," and Svedberg-Yen is a self-confessed "trophy hunter," who has "platinumed Elden Ring, God of War, God of War: Ragnarok." From a complete gaming novice to getting a FromSoft platinum in less than five years is a huge shift, which is possibly why Svedberg-Yen now says "I guess you could say I play quite a lot of games these days." Having been catapulted all the way to GOTY contender, I imagine that 'these days' are likely to continue for quite a while yet.
Speaking of GOTY, you can cast your vote for the Golden Joystick Awards 2025 right here.
