Sure, here’s a new version for you:
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You ever tried writing a novel? It’s just you, yourself, and you again — mostly, anyway. Screenplay’s a bit tighter. Like, 120 pages kinda deal, maybe unless you’re working with ol’ Scorsese. But creating a video game? Whole other beast. It’s cramming in hours of story, reshaping bits to fit gameplay, plus wrangling a bunch of other writers to make sense of it all. Sometimes, it’s just past midnight, and you’re chucking words like pasta at a wall, hoping some brilliance sticks. Sounds fun, right? Or maybe just sleep-deprived chaos.
Take Clair Obscur, for instance. All those Frenchy quirks, it’s captured imaginations, especially this character, Esquie. There’s a campfire chat about François — a friend. Esquie’s all about “Franfran used to be all ‘Wheeee!’ But now he’s all ‘Whooo.’” And while this whole silliness plays out, players get to decide if they’re more of a ‘whee’ or a ‘woo’. It’s bonkers but in a charming way.
So, here’s Svedberg-Yen at like 3 a.m., trying not to faceplant on her keyboard, grin on her face, “I needed to spit out seven dialogues for Esquie!” Seemed reasonable at the time, I suppose.
Script’s a beast — 800 pages, and that’s just the start. Toss in NPC chatter, background lore — it’s like a novel marathon. She’s pulling inspiration like a magician — or maybe more like a frantic squirrel. Take Monoco, this floating gestral? Totally based on her dog. True story. Dog needed a trim, and voilà, Monoco’s debating haircuts with Verso. “You look like an overgrown mop.” Classic.
Honestly, the “whee whoo” nonsense gets even more ridiculous at ungodly hours, but it clicks. “I wanted to mix joy with sadness; I was so out of words — so ‘wheeeeee!’ happened.”
For a fantasy scribe like Svedberg-Yen, keeping it real is key — characters need roots, even if they’re midair or mystical. Authenticity means trusting your gut, even the wacky parts. Clair Obscur’s a mix of tragedy and light laughs. That’s life, sprinkled in a game world, I guess. “Push it too far? Maybe. But hey, what’s my gut saying? Let’s throw that in the script. That’s as real as it gets.”
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