The actor who provided the motion capture for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s Gustave has spoken out to say it would be “more logical” to have a Best Character category at awards shows to help give credit to everyone who contributed to bringing a character to life in a game. The actor, Maxence Cazorla, is saying this against the backdrop of only one person, voice actor Charlie Cox, being nominated for Best Performance at The Game Awards for the role of Gustave. For what it’s worth, Cox was open in acknowledging that Cazorla deserved credit, too, and Cazorla said Cox was kind to say that.
Cox did not end up winning Best Performance, as it was Jennifer English as Maelle from Expedition 33 who took home the award. In any event, Cazorla told Eurogamer that he believes a “Best Character category feels more logical” than “isolating a single performer and potentially leaving others invisible.”
Whether or not this is something that host and organizer Geoff Keighley is considering for next year’s The Game Awards is unknown.
Cazorla went on to say that it was an “incredible honor” for him that Cox “spoke publicly and acknowledged my work.”
“I was deeply moved by his humility and generosity,” he said.
Cazorla said a character like Gustave is a “combination of these two performances,” referencing his physical contributions to the motion capture and Cox’s voice. He also gave credit to the “incredible writing and development work” for Gustave.
While Cazorla said he would like to see a Best Character award in the future, he’s not so sure about an award for the best performance capture. “I think it’s a delicate subject, because every game is built differently,” Cazorla said. “In this case, Clair Obscur is a game where many of the characters are created through collaboration between two actors.”
Expedition 33’s other major characters, including Maelle, Lune, and Verso were performed by multiple actors as well, Cazorla pointed out. “Other games might have a single actor doing full performance capture, and some projects even involve stunt performers, motion-capture actors, and voice actors all contributing to the same character,” he said.
Given all that, Cazorla said he thinks the “fairest way to celebrate performers” is through an award, or some kind of recognition, that celebrates the character instead.
The DICE Awards already do this, Cazorla pointed out. “I think it’s a very intelligent approach,” he said. For the latest DICE Awards, the character Indiana Jones from Indiana Jones and the Great Circle won the award. He was performed by Troy Baker, for both his voice and the motion capture.
Expedition 33 just had one of its awards taken away, as The Indie Game Awards revoked the title’s Game of the Year win amid AI concerns. GameSpot named Expedition 33 our Game of the Year.