Seven Reason how, with zero to no marketing, Clair Obscur crushed Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Ah, Assassin’s Creed Shadows—Ubisoft’s highly promoted, overhyped action game, which they marketed like it was the second coming of Jesus. Seriously, you couldn’t scroll through social media without seeing it—sponsored reels, glowing influencer reviews, and a million-dollar marketing campaign, all promising an experience that would make you question every historical game you’ve ever played.
But after all that noise, when players finally got their hands on it, the sales numbers didn’t quite match the endless promotion. The game was good no doubt, but nothing we haven’t seen before. Meanwhile, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33—a smaller budget title with no flashy marketing and little-to-no paid reviews—has quietly become a fan favorite in less than a week after release. Despite Assassin’s Creed Shadows getting the spotlight for a month, Clair Obscur outshone it in terms of appreciation and excitement. It didn’t need a mountain of cash to prove it had something special. Go figure.
To really put things into perspective, let’s talk numbers. Assassin’s Creed Shadows sold around 310,000 copies in its first three days. Meanwhile, Clair Obscur, with almost no budget for marketing, managed to rack up over 1 million copies sold in the same time frame. This is despite the fact that you can also choose not to buy Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and play it on XBox gamepass, and play it at very minimal cost.
Sure, Ubisoft has the funds, but Clair Obscur, made by just 30 people, had something Ubisoft didn’t: substance. The indie title’s unexpected success just proves that, sometimes, quality speaks louder than a mountain of promotional noise.
Let us look at seven reasons why Clair Obscur Expedition 33 is a much bigger success than Assassin’s Creed Shadows…
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1. The Bold, Fresh Narrative of Clair Obscur
While Assassin’s Creed Shadows sticks to the overdone “revenge story” formula Clair Obscur took a risk with a unique and emotional story we can connect with. However, Ubisoft has been doing the same story about taking revenge for the death of parents again and again. Check Assassin’s Creed 2, Assassin’s Creed 3, Assassin’s Creed Unity, and even Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. However, in Clair Obscur, you won’t find any revenge-driven hero with a tragic backstory here. Instead, Clair Obscur offers players a story in a fantasy land, where our heroes try to prevent a calamity that they have endured for 67 years. It is a story where themes of light and shadow shape both the world and its characters. It’s refreshing to see something new instead of the same recycled stories of vengeance. This is why Clair Obscur stands out among RPG games best known for their plotlines—it provides something we haven’t seen before.
2. No Big-Budget? No Problem
While Ubisoft may have thrown millions at their marketing for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Clair Obscur has proven that a small team and a solid vision can go much further than money. With no extravagant ads, just word of mouth and organic buzz, Clair Obscur managed to create a more compelling experience. In a world where big budgets often overshadow true creativity, Clair Obscur stands as proof that indie games can create powerful, innovative experiences without the need for corporate backing.
3. Ghost of Tsushima’s Ghost Haunt Shadows
Let’s be real here: Assassin’s Creed Shadows looks awfully familiar if you’ve played Ghost of Tsushima, which only released five years ago. In fact, it seems like Ubisoft was following in the footsteps of Ghost of Tsushima, offering another open-world adventure in Japan focusing on samurai and ninjas. The problem? We already have Ghost of Tsushima—a game that did the samurai and ninja themes incredibly well. Assassin’s Creed Shadows doesn’t offer anything truly new for players, making it hard to justify a full-priced purchase when Ghost of Tsushima already set the bar high. Yes, in terms of few gameplay mechanics Shadows might be superior to Ghost of Tsushima, but if we talk about the overall experience, it fails to match.
Read our full review of Assassin’s Creed Shadows here.
4. Why Ubisoft’s Yasuke Missed the Mark
Despite the negative feedback from players, Ubisoft continued to go with Yasuke in AC Shadows —an attempt at a more diverse protagonist. Unfortunately, this move felt hollow and poorly executed. It seemed like a forced attempt to appease certain people and corporate masters rather than an effort to tell a genuinely good story. Meanwhile, Clair Obscur didn’t need any such gimmicks to create diverse, well-written characters. The characters are relatable, and their actions actually make sense within the context of the game, making Clair Obscur a more engaging experience for us all.
5. A New World: Why Assassin’s Creed Could Have Done More
Ubisoft’s decision to stick with Japan for Assassin’s Creed Shadows feels like a missed opportunity. There are so many underrepresented regions in gaming—India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Argentina —locations that we rarely see in gaming titles. Instead of showing us Japan once again, which we already saw in Ghost of Tsushima, Ubisoft could have brought fresh perspectives to the table by exploring these new areas, introducing players to unique cultures and untold stories. Clair Obscur, on the other hand, doesn’t just stick to conventional locations. Although based on French culture, the game has created its own fantasy world.
6. Gameplay Mechanics: Fresh but Familiar
Clair Obscur brings an innovative take on fantasy games and action games. The turn-based combat mechanics, although reminds us of some RPG games best, feel fresh and dynamic. There is a balance between combat and exploration, which is close to perfect. It offers you a gameplay loop that doesn’t tire you at all. In contrast, Assassin’s Creed Shadows follows the same old stealth mechanics that have been present in the series for years. Yes, the game looks gorgeous, and the stealth mechanics are sharp, but nothing here feels revolutionary. The same old sneaky assassin gameplay with a few tweaks doesn’t justify the hype, and many players have felt the fatigue of seeing the same mechanics for years.
7. Sales Speak Louder Than Words
Despite the enormous marketing budget for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, it struggled to meet expectations in terms of sales and player engagement. Clair Obscur, on the other hand, with its organic success and indie charm, has seen more than impressive sales numbers, despite being on Gamepass. It shows that great gameplay and a fresh narrative can win over all the flashy promotions in the world. The fact that a smaller budget game with close-to-zero promotion managed to outshine a massive franchise like Assassin’s Creed speaks volumes about what players truly want from their games—something original, unique and immersive, and not tied to a giant corporate brand.
