It’s online game awards season, which has now change into synonymous with the annual reminder that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 star Ben Starr is an absolute gem. Not solely is Starr as soon as once more being a complete goofball for everybody else’s enjoyment, however he’s additionally utilizing his voice to talk out in opposition to the trade’s incapability to retain expertise. Go off, anti-layoff king.
Although he’s been an actor for some time, Starr catapulted to gamer fame after taking part in Clive Rosfield in 2023’s Last Fantasy XVI and going viral throughout that yr’s Sport Awards. He then grew to become the face of 2024’s breakout card battler Balatro, doing bizarre commercials as Jimbo, its Joker mascot, proving as soon as and for all that he commits to a bit. This yr, he’s been nominated for a number of year-end awards for his position as Verso in Expedition 33, and is again on his scrumptious bullshit.
Throughout the November 20 Golden Joystick Awards, the UK-based award ceremony that’s been round in some kind since 1983, Starr walked up on-stage to current the award for Greatest Indie Sport sporting a Golden Joystick-style Balatro card with a face gap lower out that positioned him on the prime of the trophy. “I’m classically skilled Golden Joystick-winning actor Ben Starr,” he stated, standing there with simply his face and legs exhibiting behind the cardboard. “Isn’t independence empowering? You are able to do no matter you need.”
Watch all the presentation right here, it’s value it.
However Starr wasn’t happy with fooling around. When it was introduced that he’d gained Greatest Supporting Performer for Sandfall Interactive’s Expedition 33, he spoke about Verso as a personality, about his flaws, and the way they make him a polarizing determine. “I feel that’s what this trade does greatest, it presents us with flawed characters that replicate the lives we now have on the surface,” Starr stated. “‘Trigger life, guys, as we all know—and I’m gonna be the primary one to swear—is fucking onerous.”
Starr additionally made certain to talk plainly in regards to the online game trade’s deluge of layoffs during the last a number of years. “This trade is difficult. We’re celebrating immediately, astonishing video video games, however there are a lot of individuals who needs to be right here who aren’t as a result of they’re laid off from the trade,” he started. (As he paused, somebody within the viewers shouted, “Effectively stated, Ben.”) He continued:
Many individuals would possibly criticize me for grandstanding proper now, however the one factor that Sandfall do and have executed is respect those that work for them. They respect the those that they’re making video games for, and so they need to make them good. That’s the reason this recreation is nice, it’s as a result of they wished to make it good for the folks they’re making it for. They didn’t need it to be widespread. So that they wrote characters which might be flawed, they wrote characters which might be damaged, they wrote characters that, finally, you would possibly hate. And I’m very very lucky to doubtlessly play certainly one of them.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 gained seven Golden Joysticks and set a document for essentially the most nominations at this yr’s Sport Awards with 12. Let Ben Starr give each successful speech.
