President of France Announces International Festival of Video Games Following Success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

France's president Emmanuel Macron has announced plans to create a new international video game festival. The announcement follows the international success of French game studio Sandfall Interactive and their title, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Macron revealed the initiative during the September 7 Lumiere Summit, an event intended to unite purveyors of the moving-image.

“Because video games are part of our culture, we are creating an international video game festival,” Macron stated in a social media post accompanying a clip from his speech. His goal for the upcoming festival is to publicize and popularize French video game development, highlighting major global successes originating from France. While France currently hosts Paris Games Week, Macron has not yet detailed how the new international festival will differ from existing local events. The newly announced festival does not yet have an official date, scope, or location.

The announcement builds on previous recognition for the local development scene. In December 2025, Macron congratulated the makers of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 for a second time, referring to the role-playing game as a historic French title following its widespread recognition and success at awards ceremonies. The proposed international event aims to provide a platform to help showcase future ambitious projects from French developers.