On April 22, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered was released almost without any promotion and became one of the hottest games in recent times. The turn-based RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 developed by French studio Sandfall Interactive was also launched at the same time.
On the day of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered’s launch, the publisher of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 shared an art picture of the game and exclaimed: “Oh my god, it’s like Barbenheimer”
Barbenheimer
The word Barbenheimer comes from the movie Barbie and Oppenheimer, which was released on the same day on July 21, 2023. Gloomy and tough, the serious theme of Oppenheimer is in sharp contrast to the colorful and cheerful Barbie.
Both movies were loved by the audience, and many viewers chose to watch both movies at the same time. This greatly increased the box office of the two movies. Both movies were among the highest-grossing movies of 2023 and received multiple awards and nominations. Therefore, the industry calls this phenomenon of two movies with different audiences, bringing positive effects to each other Barbenheimer.
Different
Unlike these two movies, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered have overlapping player groups. Although the two games have completely different gameplay systems, they are both role-playing games anyway, so players interested in one game may also be interested in the other. This means that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered will compete with Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 when it is released.
However, both games also landed on XGP on the first day of their launch. Since XGP subscribers can play both games at no additional cost, they can experience both games at the same time without having to choose between purchasing one game. This may minimize the negative impact of their adjacent releases on each other.
Another point is that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion remake does not bring any new content. Bethesda basically remade the game’s graphics with Unreal Engine V and slightly optimized the action. Some players even found that the speed run bug of The Elder Scrolls IV can still be used in the remake. This kind of remake, like repainting an old car, may also be difficult to maintain popularity.
