Author: Nik Ranger

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs tease “next big game” is underway and already pushing boundaries Larian StudiosFollowing the success of Baldur’s Gate 3, Larian Studios is now motivated to continue pushing the boundaries with their “next big game” that is already underway. In a year jam-packed with exceptional games, Baldur’s Gate 3 stands out as one of the very best. Our own review of Baldur’s Gate 3 hailed it as not just one of the top games of the year but “one of the best RPGs ever made.” Developed by Larian Studios, Baldur’s Gate 3 has now been nominated for a wide range of categories at The Game Awards, including Game of the Year, Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Score And Music, and Best Performance, with a special nod to Neil Newbon’s portrayal of Astarion. And it seems that this tremendous success is driving Larian Studios to continue to push boundaries in their “next big game.” Taking to Twitter, Swen Vincke, the CEO of Larian Studios, reflected on the game’s successful release, writing, “This is a real honor, especially in a year with so many releases. Seeing our little “niche RPG” make such waves is very motivating.” But the story doesn’t end here for Larian Studios. Vincke hinted at the studio’s “next big game,” which is already in the works and appears as though it will continue to push boundaries, much like Baldur’s Gate 3 did. “I wish I could tell you about our next big game but this is really encouraging us to ensure it pushes many boundaries,” Vincke shared. “I’m very excited about it.” This isn’t the first we have heard of Larian’s next game, as Vincke had already hinted at the development previously but remained tight-lipped so as not to reveal the title or direction of the game. However, in an interview with IGN, Larian confirmed that they’d be looking to return to Divinity: Original Sin at some point. It seems the best guess so far is that the studio’s next game will be Divinity: Original Sin 3. “It’s [Divinity: Original Sin] our own universe we built, so we’re definitely gonna get back there at some point,” Vincke said in July. “We will get back there at some point. We’ll first finish this one [Baldur’s Gate 3] now, and then take a break, because we will need to refresh ourselves creatively also.” Regardless of whether it’s Divinity: Original Sin or Baldur’s Gate, we can be sure that both new and old Larian Studios fans will flock to the next release, whenever it may be.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs tease “17,000” variations for game’s ending Twitter: baldursgate3A Baldur’s Gate 3 developer has teased that there are 17,000 variations to the game’s ending, likely in the form of a cutscene. Baldur’s Gate 3 is shaping up to be one of the biggest games ever made. With hours upon hours of content, the DnD-inspired role-playing title will have players hooked for days on end. Whilst the game has yet to be fully released, players have already had the chance to complete a bit of the first act thanks to early access, however, the full game dwarfs the content from that teaser. With mere weeks away from the PC launch, the developers have been hard at work promoting the game. There has been plenty of developer live streams showcasing the various classes, races, and newest origin characters, all building up hype for the game’s release on August 3, 2023. One impressive feature of Baldur’s Gate 3 will be its lengthy and complex campaign. Players will be able to craft their own narratives like in Dungeon and Dragons campaigns, with plenty of routes to pick and choose from. All of this may be trumped by the most recent teaser from Baldur’s Gate 3 developers, Larian Studios, who have hinted at a ridiculous amount of variations for the game’s ending. Baldur’s Gate 3 dev hints at 17,000 variations to game’s ending In a recent conversation with Fextralife, associate writing lead at Larian Studios, Chrystal Ding, stated that the game would have 17,000 variations to its ending. Add on top of this the 174 hours of cutscenes spread throughout the game and you can already imagine the sheer breadth of the title. That being said, it’s obvious that these variations don’t necessarily mean groundbreaking changes between each one. Instead, the game will probably have a cutscene that changes based on the player’s choices throughout their time, making the ending feel a bit more personalized.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs say the new epilogue is the game’s “final goodbye” Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 just got a massive update with Patch 5 and devs have called the new epilogue the game’s “final goodbye”. Baldur’s Gate 3’s latest update is Patch 5. It comes in at a whopping 30GB and includes a heap of new changes to the game like easier access to Minthara. Players are already over the moon that fan-favorite character Bing Bong the Imp has been added to the game. Bing Bong was birthed during a live-streamed D&D session featuring the cast of Baldur’s Gate 3. The major highlight of the patch is of course a brand-new Baldur’s Gate 3 epilogue that takes place six months after the events of the game. According to an update from Larian Studios, this party hosted by Whithers features thousands of new lines of dialogue. “For the writers of Larian, this ‘final goodbye’ has been some of the most complex writing in the game so far, as it takes advantage of Baldur’s Gate 3’s reactivity across the entire adventure,” Larian said on its blog. “A gigantic tree of permutations defines the content, with new writing (3,589 lines, to be exact), cinematics, and even characters joining the get-together at camp, organized by Withers.” “Players will now find themselves in camp, six months after the events of Baldur’s Gate 3’s story, where they’ll meet new friends and old, taking all the time they need to say their final goodbyes to the party,” Larian explained. This new epilogue will change depending on what actions players have taken on their quest and have different attendees based on what content was completed. Maybe it can finally give Karlach the happier ending fans have been hoping for. “This playable new epilogue gameplay, accessible to all players loading the game prior to the final fight, takes place before the credits,” Larian clarified in their announcement. This means players who have finished the story can access it if they have a save from that period. If you’re trying to get to this new Baldur’s Gate 3 epilogue as fast as possible, we have heaps of guides for the game to help you out. Best Sorcerer build | Best Bard build | Best Rogue build | Best Fighter build | Best Ranger build | Best Barbarian build | Best Druid build | Best Warlock build | Best Wizard build | Baldur’s Gate 3: What’s the max level cap? | Best Baldur’s Gate 3 classes tier list | How to revive characters in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Can you multiclass in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Baldur’s Gate 3 Soul Coins: How to get them & what they are | Baldur’s Gate 3: Fastest ways to get XP & level up | Baldur’s Gate 3: How to respec your character | Baldur’s Gate 3 Karmic Dice: What are they?

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs rushing to fix Act 3 bugs: “We are just as frustrated as you” Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios published a huge Community Update addressing player feedback on the multiple Act 3 bugs. They’ve promised to rectify the issues as swiftly as possible in the next patch. Baldur’s Gate 3 launched to near-universal acclaim and quickly became one of the most concurrently played PC games of all time. Players have been having a ball with the game so far slinging OP spells and blitzing through sultry speedruns. Unfortunately, there’s been a bit of a blotch on the almost perfect record of Baldur’s Gate 3. Players are progressing to the game’s final act to find it riddled with bugs and have been expressing their displeasure online. Larian has heard the outcry loud and clear and addressed the multiple complaints in a recent Community Update on Steam. They broke down their plans for the future of Baldur’s Gate 3 with an emphasis on the late-game bugs. “We’ve seen your reports about Act 3, and we are as frustrated as you are by bugs spoiling the experience,” Larian wrote in the update. “We’re dedicated to solving these quickly and as you’ve noticed by our Hotfix and Patch rollout, we’re getting pretty fast.” Multiple players on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Subreddit and Twitter have complained about certain Act 3 quests locking progression due to bugs. Larian explained its process for prioritizing “blockers” with hotfixes “when a patch is not imminent”. Fortunately, a patch is imminent. Patch 2 for Baldur’s Gate 3 is in the works and Larian is focusing specifically on the performance and bugs of Act 3. “Patch 2 looks to further eliminate some of the more major issues, including those found in Act 3,” Larian clarified. “Where there seem to be loose ends, we’re tying them up. The first patch for Baldur’s Gate 3 made major improvements to the game with fixes to bugs, balancing, quest flow, and more. The developer has built a lot of trust with their community thanks to their responsiveness and accountability. Despite the Act 3 bugs present in the game, Baldur’s Gate 3 is actually retaining players at a greater rate than even Elden Ring. If Larian continues to ensure the game performs optimally, it’s sure to have a long-lasting shelf life.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs reveal plan for cross-platform mod support Larian StudiosLarian Studios has announced it intends to implement official mod support for Baldur’s Gate 3 that works across platforms. Baldur’s Gate 3 is getting official cross-platform mod support this year. Since launch, mods have been an important part of Baldur’s Gate 3. There are plenty of mods for the game that allow players to expand their party, reach higher levels, or simply get new cosmetic options. Now, developer Larian Studios has announced plans to actively support the modding community in a way that will even let players on consoles get in on the fun. Baldur’s Gate 3 official mod support coming this year The announcement was made in a Discord post shared by Reddit user LeastLeopard155. Here, the devs revealed official mod support has been in the works “for a while” and the intention is “establishing a pipeline that lets mod authors release their mods across different platforms.” “Together with the platform holders, we are working on making this a reality, and are forming a team to support mod curation,” they announced. Larian Director of Publishing Michael Douse confirmed the plan and said mod support will launch “later in year.” Larian, as Douse mentions, rarely announces plans ahead of time, but the decision to share this now likely stems from a recent issue. Hotfix 18 made the Script Extender modification incompatible, and while official updates breaking mods is common, Larian seems to want to mitigate such issues. Initial reception to the announcement has been overwhelmingly positive, with many thrilled to hear even console players will be able to use mods. “Larian once again proving you’re getting your moneys worth,” said one Reddit user. No release date or window has been announced, though players can expect “the initial stages of modding support in our next big patch, which is still several months away.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs reveal most popular & strangest choices players keep making Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios has revealed statistics regarding the most popular and strangest choices players have made since launch. The developers of Baldur’s Gate 3 have been keeping tabs on the fanbase since the Early Access version of the game, with stats & feedback flowing back to them. This information promoted changes to the game, such as the companions’ personalities being tweaked over time. Once the game’s initial launch weekend was over, Larian already had lists of Baldur’s Gate 3’s most popular classes and races to share. This data was based on everyone’s first run-through at launch, with players using their ideal character for their journey into the Forgotten Realms. Now that Baldur’s Gate 3 has been out for a few months, Larian has released new stats, showing just how much time and effort the fanbase has put into the game. Baldur’s Gate 3 players have made some strange decisions since launch A new post on the official Larian Studios Twitter/X page features updated player stats, showing what everyone has been up to since launch. The most popular races are the Paladin, Sorcerer, and Fighter, while the Monk, Ranger, and Cleric are the least popular. Meanwhile, the most popular races are the Elf, Human, and Half-Elf, while the least popular are the Dwarf, Gnome, and Halfling. Regarding party members, Gale is the most popular Origin character to play as, with Lae’zel being the least popular. In terms of romantic partners in Baldur’s Gate 3, Shadowheart is the most popular, followed by Karlach and Lae’zel. When it comes to stranger stats, Scratch the Dog has been petted 48.5 million times, the Speak with Dead spell has been used 113 million times, 84 million Fireballs have been thrown, and 2 million players survived a dinosaur attack. The most unfortunate players are the 1.2 million characters forced to dance via magic or the 1.24 million players transformed into sentient cheese. The magic of the D&D multiverse truly is terrifying to behold. Baldur’s Gate 3 has had a truly astonishing amount of engagement from players since launch, with millions of people worldwide going on bizarre adventures, all of which are being monitored by Larian for future laughs on social media.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs reveal Lae’zel ending so rare only 34 players got it Larian StudiosOne of the rarest events in Baldur’s Gate 3 only had 34 players experience it, according to anniversary statistics shared by Larian Studios. In celebration of the game’s first anniversary, Larian Studios revealed some interesting statistics. Based on these stats, a Reddit post from a fan highlights one extremely rare occurrence that can happen in Lae’zel’s Origin story. Only 34 Baldur’s Gate 3 players who experienced the story as Lae’zel decided to kill themselves after Vlaakith rejected her ascension. Vlaakith is the Githyanki’s ruler who once promised Lae’zel an ascension if she found the Mysterious Artefact for her. However, things don’t go as planned, and once she rejects Lae’zel’s ascension, the player is given the option to end her life. Replies to this post were shocked at the statistic. Not only due to the ending that few players knew about but also because of the minuscule number of players who have experienced this ending. Baldur’s Gate 3 players were already familiar with some of the game’s darkest endings, yet this one flew right under the radar. Since this has been highlighted as a fairly uncommon occurrence, it’s likely many players will attempt to hunt it down themselves. Some replies attempted to figure out how this ending came to be, with someone saying “I would say you have to play Origin Lae’Zel, Kill Voss and Orpheus, maybe control the brain (?), and then be rejected.” One player in the replies who managed to get this ending told curious fans, “just do the opposite of everything you think Vlakith would want and then do her ending still as origin Laezel.” The discussions about incredibly rare endings such as this one push dedicated players to discover every conclusion this game has to offer, and it wouldn’t be surprising if fans fan even rarer endings.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs reveal Karlach’s key feature was late addition Larian StudiosThe developers of Baldur’s Gate 3 have shared that a crucial element of Karlach – her infernal engine heart – was a late addition to the character. During the BAFTA’s An Evening with Baldur’s Gate 3 masterclass held on June 14, 2024, Larian Studios CEO Swen Vincke, Writing Director Adam Smith, and Lead Writer Chrystal Ding discussed the award-winning game’s development and revealed this interesting Karlach tidbit (shared by PC Gamer). Smith discussed the changes everyone’s favorite fiery tiefling underwent, saying “We had a lot of different concepts [for Karlach], and one of the last things that fell into place was the heart. We didn’t have the heart for a long time – this person was [just] a fugitive from hell.” He also explained further the thinking behind giving Karlach an engine for a heart, saying the team was “looking for the extra coolness” and trying to answer the question “What is this character’s thing about them that we can interact with, that we can engage with?” Adding such a major aspect of Karlach’s character later in development – and the mechanics and visual elements that come with it – was clearly a massive undertaking for the developers. Smith even joked about it, recalling “When you say to a lighting team and a cinematic team, ‘by the way, she’s now got a glowing metal heart in her chest’, they say ‘oh okay, really?’ That was a good Wednesday.” Vincke added that the notes went both ways, with the cinematic teams inspiring some changes themselves, saying “really it’s like many things about Baldur’s Gate 3, it was teamwork that defined what the characters did.” The fact that such an important element of Karlach’s character didn’t come about until later in development is surprising. While her infernal engine heart was never mentioned in early access, it was not clear until now whether that was a matter of Larian moving story reveals around to save surprises for launch or a story beat that didn’t exist from the start. It’s also a surprise given how much of Karlach’s story revolves around her malfunctioning engine heart. Throughout the game, Karlach expresses joy at finally being free from Avernus, but it’s tinged with fear that the engine will either kill her or force her back to the Hells for a solution. On top of that, there are the Infernal Iron and Soul Coins players can use to power her up, the latter of which are consumables that activate Karlach’s special Infernal Fury ability. Then again, Larian did manage to write, record, and create cinematics for a brand-new Karlach ending introduced in Patch 2, not even a full month after launch, so huge changes and story additions like this are impressive but not shocking.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs reveal cut content included new areas for Wyll, Gortash & more Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 devs reveal some of the content that didn’t make it to the game, including areas for Wyll, Gortash, and more. Baldur’s Gate 3 has managed to create some of the most memorable characters thanks to their story and the performance behind them. For so long now, the community has been going out of its way to dig into the datamined content of some characters to take a peek at what the game could’ve been. However, out of all the characters, it’s no secret that the community is convinced some are getting the short end of the stick. The ones that come to mind are Wyll and Gortash, the latter being a villain that players think should be in a separate act. While Larian has confirmed that they’ll be improving Wyll’s dialogue and romance scenes and that Gortash won’t be a romance option in Patch 7, an interview with Larian from PCGamer provided a glimpse into content regarding these two characters that didn’t make it to the game. According to their report, Wyll was supposed to have his own area in the Red War College. Meanwhile, players would initially meet Gortash in Candlekeep instead of Baldur’s Gate. Those who have played the first Baldur’s Gate game are no strangers to this location, as it is the home of the game’s main character, Gorion’s Ward. But as the report revealed, that’s not all. If you managed to uncover Kagha’s secret in Act One, then surely you’re familiar with the Shadow Druids. Well, it turns out there was supposed to be a Shadow Druids hangout place alongside a gnome village and a map that players could explore in a “non-linear fashion just like the original games.” The team revealed that these were cut for a variety of reasons. However, the key issue was that “they were smaller areas, leading to fewer ways for players to be able to express themselves and do their own thing.” Baldur’s Gate 3 is already a massive game, and despite knowing that all these additions didn’t make it to the game, all the content and mod support coming in Patch 7 should keep players busy for a long time.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs reveal crucial long rest detail that may change how you play Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 developers have revealed a crucial detail about the long rest mechanic that may just change the way players approach adventuring throughout the game. Baldur’s Gate 3 has exploded onto the gaming scene in marvelous fashion. The RPG has seen ridiculous measures of success, surpassing Tears of the Kingdom as the highest-rated game of 2023 on Metacritic. Developers Larian Studios have once again crafted a fantastic, in-depth RPG with sprawling maps, interesting storytelling, and lovable characters all for players to enjoy. Easily one of the best features of Baldur’s Gate 3 is its huge regions that players traverse through. These are filled to the brim with easter eggs, NPCs, and enemies to take down making each and every twist and turn a new chapter in your adventure. Naturally, it can all take a toll on your party members, however, so it’s always important to know when to rest. Fortunately, a Baldur’s Gate 3 developer has revealed a key detail that may affect the way players view long rests, as they can have lasting effects on the game world. Baldur’s Gate 3 developer reveals timing of long rests are crucial This new information came to light after players of Baldur’s Gate 3 were confused when the world would progress without them. Many believed it had something to do with how often they would long rest, as they thought the time passing had a factor in it. After speaking with IGN, developers at Larian Studios clarified it’s not about the quantity of long rests the player takes, rather it’s when the player decides to long rest. “It’s not about how many long rests you take, but when you choose to take a long rest can have an effect. For instance, if you enter a town and see an inn on fire and you immediately decide to go to bed, that may have consequences.” Therefore, how long rests affect the world in Baldur’s Gate 3 is entirely based on the situation, meaning players will need to adjust their decision-making for where they are in the game.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs respond to backlash over uncredited translators Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 fans noticed a major discrepancy in the game’s credits. Now, Larian Studios have responded to a number of translators going uncredited for their work. Baldur’s Gate 3 has had one of the most successful launches of 2023 shattering even its developer’s expectations. The game’s popularity has pushed it into the top ten highest concurrently played games of all time on Steam. The unfathomable amount of content and freedom of choice the game provides has delighted its players. The project was clearly a massive labor of love over many years. It’s understandable then that the game’s community was outraged when they discovered translators working for localization firm Altagram weren’t credited for their work on the project. Fan backlash was swift across social media and developer Larian Studios responded in kind. Larian Studios’ speaks on uncredited translator controversy In a statement made to Eurogamer, a representative from Larian explained the situation was not known to them and not a decision of theirs. “This was all Altagram group,” a spokesperson explained. “We reached out, and compelled them to fix this.” Larian have asked Altagram for a list of employees who contributed and said that they would ensure that these translators were added to the credits. “As soon as we were made aware, we took steps with Altagram to remedy this immediately,” Larian’s spokesperson confirmed. Under the initial tweet that broke the story, an employee of the Spanish localization team for Baldur’s Gate 3 explained the level of work that Altagram’s staff would have contributed to the project. “As a member of the (credited) Spanish team, I can confirm that it took us almost 4fouryears and that the final amount of text is over 2.5 million words,” they explained. “All translators were credited except those working for Altagram.” Larian initially told Eurogamer that the credits would be added in a future Hotfix. They have since clarified that the update will instead come in the game’s first major patch. Players have praised Larian’s quick response and pointed out that Altagram has previously left translators uncredited for work on Diablo 4. The issue has sparked conversations regarding how much work goes into video game localization and how to improve the industry.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs respond to absurd Nicolas Cage edit: “Could you not” Reddit: u/JirkisloA Nicolas Cage-themed Baldur’s Gate 3 fan edit isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. That includes the devs at Larian Studios. Baldur’s Gate 3 players are a creative lot whether that’s within the confines of the game or outside of it. They’re adept at creating unique solutions to in-game encounters like throwing their dead mothers at a boss. Baldur’s Gate 3 players have also invented the world’s most sultry speedrunning category. One fan of the game who goes by u/Jirkislo on Reddit has pushed this seemingly ubiquitous creativity to new heights by fusing major Baldur’s Gate 3 characters with the one true god, Nicolas Cage. Unfortunately for them, Larian devs didn’t appreciate this high art and they made that clear when someone shared the work on X. Sharing a small selection of these Nicolas Cage amalgams including fusions with fan favorites like Astarion and Karlach, X user kindofstrange qualified their feelings. “I saw this so now you have to too,” they captioned the post. Reactions were a little mixed with some Baldur’s Gate 3 fans demanding a live-action film in which Nicolas Cage played every character. Others were mad that they were subjected to the images at all asking the player “how dare you?”. Larian was decidedly unimpressed and made their thoughts on the matter pretty clear. “Could you not,” they asked in a reply to the post. kindofstrange did set the record straight and credit u/Jirkislo’s Reddit post which featured way more of what people are calling ‘Baldur’s Cage’. That’s below for any die-hard Cageheads or folks who want to subject themselves to the madness. We’re not too certain how we feel about Cage’s face over our favorite goth girlfriend but his mug is oddly suited to some of the character models. Just don’t tell Larian we said that. We have a reputation to uphold after all.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs praise creative player who obliterated entire Goblin Camp YouTube: OkoiiOne Baldur’s Gate 3 player has managed to earn praise from devs and fans alike after creatively obliterating the entire Goblin Camp. Using a sequence of explosive barrels, Baldur’s Gate 3 player Okoii orchestrated a chain reaction that resulted in a fiery spectacle and a hilarious video clip that quickly went viral. The video, posted to YouTube and later tweeted by Okoii with the caption, “Thank you for making this game, it is an absolute masterpiece. I blew up Goblin Camp in celebration,” showcases the meticulous placement of barrels throughout the Goblin Town. The barrels were lined up in such a way that the explosion of the first led to a domino effect, ending with a massive explosion set to classical music. The clip even earned the praise of Swen Vincke, CEO of Larian Studios and Director of Baldur’s Gate 3, who tweeted, “And here I thought we’d been conservative on the amount of explosives – love it!” Baldur’s Gate 3, a game known for its flexibility and freedom in tackling challenges, has seen players come up with unique solutions to in-game problems. From collecting and sorting all dead NPC corpses and insane sex speedruns to using the game’s tools to create something more destructive, the game encourages outside-the-box thinking. Okoii’s explosive barrel sequence is a perfect example of this creativity. With a backdrop of classical music, the resulting explosion was not only massive but also caused structural damage and killed all NPCs in the area. The final shot of the video showcased four barbarian halfling players standing over the ruins, looking on after this explosive masterpiece. The community has been quick to praise Okoii’s creativity and editing skills, with some even dubbing them a “barrelmancer” for their work. The setup and editing process alone took about eight hours, showcasing a level of dedication that has resonated with fans. As a game that continues to reward clever player thoughts and schemes, such as Okoii’s explosive creativity, it’s no wonder why Baldur’s Gate is regarded as one of the very best games of 2023.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs outline their “big gamble” with immense mocap effort Larian StudiosLarion Studios is pulling back the curtain on their “big gamble” to make Baldur’s Gate 3 characters come alive. The secret sauce? An unprecedented effort in motion capture technology. Since its full release, Baldur’s Gate 3 has been turning heads for all sorts of reasons. From players crafting god-tier mages to speedrunning the game in record times, the community is buzzing. The astounding character depth and attention to detail that has seen Baldur’s Gate 3 emerge as one of the best games of the year so far. But what is it that’s making the characters in Baldur’s Gate 3 feel so different from other games? Performance Director Aliona Baranova spilled the beans on social media, revealing that a jaw-dropping 248 actors were involved in the game’s creation. “For almost ALL the dialogue we recorded, we ALSO captured the actors’ mocap data,” Baranova tweeted. “All 248 actors, ALL the NPCs and not just the companions put on a mocap suit and their movements, gestures and physical choices were recorded & sent along with the audio files for the animators to use in game. Which is why the performances feels so alive.” “The iconic head wiggles Jen did as Shadowheart WERE Jen’s actual head wiggles,” she revealed. “Those quirky gestures and theatrical flairs you see? All real. All actor choices.” Larian Studios lead writer Adam Smith has shared that mo-capping every single line of dialogue was a “big gamble” for the team, but it’s this visual draw that has helped Baldur’s Gate 3 reach the levels of success it has. “We knew it would be expensive, we knew it would be time-consuming,” Smith told Games Radar. “It also means that it’s a lot harder to edit and iterate. We still did.” “The dialogue is suddenly much more expensive. But what it gives us is a game that looks beautiful. The characters feel more alive because we’re close in on them. The cinematic art, the character art, it’s just gorgeous.” From Shadowheart’s head wiggles to Astarion’s theatrical flair, these are the actors’ actual movements we’re seeing. It’s this insane level of detail that has set Baldur’s Gate 3 apart in a sea of RPGs.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs “optimistic” on fix for Xbox’s save-deleting bug Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3’s Xbox release has been hampered by a troublesome bug that’s eating save files. Developer Larian Studios has responded to the issue and is confident a fix is inbound. 2023 Game of the Year winner Baldur’s Gate 3 took a while to get to Xbox consoles but it arrived with a bang. The game shadow-dropped on Xbox shortly after it won the year’s biggest award. Game Director Swen Vincke actually said that this shadow-dropping was a mistake and he forgot to announce the release during The Game Awards. Turns out he was swept up in the thrill of winning six of the eight categories Baldur’s Gate 3 was nominated for. Unfortunately, despite all the accolades the game has received, there’s an issue. There’s a save-deleting bug for the Xbox version of Baldur’s Gate 3 that Microsoft is currently “working to fix”. The Baldur’s Gate 3 bug in question deletes saved data upon a crash which is a massive concern for Xbox players. In a game that requires the amount of investment of time and effort that Baldur’s Gate 3 does, losing any amount of progress is a major momentum killer. Xbox Support has let players know they are aware of the issue and have given some tips on how to mitigate the save-deleting bug for Baldur’s Gate 3 while they come up with a solution. Larian’s Director of Publishing Michael Douse also commented on the situation explaining that the studio was working with Microsoft to resolve things. “It’s looking optimistic,” Douse revealed. “Not as simple as just patching the game itself, so kudos to the green team for being so on top.” It appears the team at Microsoft is working on an update for Xbox consoles that should give a permanent solution to the problem. In the interim, Douse directed players to the steps that Microsoft suggested to minimize the potential of experiencing this Baldur’s Gate 3 save-deleting bug. “Good news is it shouldn’t be present on the Xbox retail version, so long as your Xbox firmware is up to date,” Douse finished. Hopefully, the issue is resolved quickly enough and Xbox players can get back to enjoying the Game of the Year without fear. If you need something to do while you wait, we’ve got a bunch of Baldur’s Gate 3 guides that should help in your adventure through the Forgotten Realms. Best Sorcerer build | Best Bard build | Best Rogue build | Best Fighter build | Best Ranger build | Best Barbarian build | Best Druid build | Best Warlock build | Best Wizard build | Baldur’s Gate 3: What’s the max level cap? | Best Baldur’s Gate 3 classes tier list | How to revive characters in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Can you multiclass in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Baldur’s Gate 3: Fastest ways to get XP & level up | Baldur’s Gate 3: How to respec your character | Baldur’s Gate 3 Karmic Dice: What are they?

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs nerf a literal pay-to-win strategy Larian StudiosThe Baldur’s Gate 3 developers have silently nerfed a hidden pay-to-win strategy involving a weapon with an insanely powerful perk. Baldur’s Gate 3 has been nothing but a huge success in 2023. The CRPG developed by Larian Studios stole the hearts and minds of players, even sweeping Game of the Year at the Game Awards in December. The game saw success in many other facets too, with Neil Newbon winning Best Performance for their role as Astarion within the game. Throughout its multiple-act story, one of the most important parts of Baldur’s Gate 3 is giving players choices. Player’s choices have massive effects on the story and the world around them, truly being impacted by their actions and decisions. This makes the world feel incredibly reactive and alive. However, another key aspect of Baldur’s Gate 3’s success is the capability to embrace player creativity. Unfortunately, it seems that one strategy may have been a tad too creative, as the devs for the CRPG have secretly nerfed it. The weapon Twist of Fortune has one of the most interesting perks available in Baldur’s Gate 3. Blood Money allows players to deal bonus damage based on the amount of gold the enemy is currently carrying. This perk has been secretly nerfed over several patches, with the original nerf being reported by a Reddit user back in November. Back then the ability was nerfed to 4 Bludgeoning damage for every 300 gold the enemy is currently carrying. However, a new user reported that the Blood Money perk now deals 3 Piercing damage per 300 gold, resulting in an overall damage loss. Players were using this unique perk by sneaking up to enemies, dumping gold into their pockets, and then thwacking them with the mace, dealing ridiculously high damage.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs hired an artist after she offered to draw “muscle mommy Karlach” YouTube/Naughty GamingArtist Anna Hollinrake revealed that she got to work with Larian, the developers behind Baldur’s Gate 3, thanks to sending a cold open email offering to draw “muscle mommy Karlach” for a T-shirt design. Baldur’s Gate 3, despite being a breakout hit, hasn’t been monetized in any way outside of some digital deluxe goodies. Larian isn’t even planning to release DLC despite players clamoring for it. So, the only way for loyal fans to get more Baldur’s Gate 3 in their life is through merch. They’ve got the traditional smattering of artbooks, records, and T-shirts you’d expect from a video game developer’s merch store, but one artist found her way into working with Larian by offering them something they didn’t have yet. With the opening line of, “I art directed Fall Guys apparel, please let me make a muscle mommy Karlach shirt,” one Anna Hollinrake managed to land a job designing a T-shirt for the company. The shirt depicts an Owlbear cub napping with Scratch at camp, a nod to two animal companions the player can pick up over the course of BG3’s campaign. However, keen-eyed Baldur’s Gate 3 fans may have noticed a sore lack of “muscle mommy Karlach” on this shirt. The Karlach enjoyers out there are surely flying their freak flags at half-mast. Hollinrake’s replies were filled with people saying things like, “But where’s the Karlach muscle mommy shirt????” and, “Does that shirt exist yet?” Considering how beloved Baldur’s Gate 3’s characters are by the fandom, it’d be no surprise to see them on merch in the future so fans can rep their favorite party member. But, as of now, there is no official Karlach shirt, or shirts with any of BG3’s party members on them for that matter. While she has yet to give an update on whether or not Larian is still interested in putting Karlach on a shirt as per her initial email, Hollinrake working on a game of her own called Crescent County in the meantime.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs give character creation deep dive ahead of full release Larian StudiosIn a recent livestream, developer Larian Studios detailed some of the big changes coming to Baldur’s Gate 3’s character creator with the full release, including the new Dragonborn race. Baldur’s Gate 3 is shaping up to be an absolutely massive RPG, and players should expect the journey to last anywhere between 75 to 100 hours in total. However, before players can embark on their adventure in Baldur’s Gate 3 they will need to create the character they will embody and control before they set out. Though players were able to try out the game’s robust character creator during the Early Access period, Larian Studios has detailed the full character creator features ahead of the release, which includes new races and much more. Baldur’s Gate 3 gives deep dive into character creator Larian gave fans a deep dive into the game’s character creator during the Panel from Hell Release Showcase live stream, which spanned four hours and showed off a ton of new footage. One of the first features the team discussed was the character creator. The full character creator will feature 11 races to choose from, including the new Half-Orc and Dragonborn races not present in the Early Access period. Players will first choose the race they want to embody, and will then customize their appearance. Fans can choose facial structure, features, skin tone, body type, and much more when creating their character. The relevant clip begins at 4:07:08 for those on mobile… Additionally, players will be able to choose what pronouns fit their character, which will be implemented and adapted in dialogue throughout the rest of the game. Players can also choose from 12 unique classes and 46 sub-classes, with each class usually having at least three sub-classes to specialize in. However, some classes such as Cleric and Wizard will have up to eight sub-classes to explore. The full video segment goes into more detail about what players can expect, but it’s clear Baldur’s Gate 3’s final character creator will be full to the brim with customization options for those looking to play their ideal fantasy character.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs explain why they actually want players to “exploit” the game Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian has no plans to reprimand players for trying to “exploit” the game but instead wants to “fuel and reward” them. Baldur’s Gate 3 has been an undeniable success for developer Larian. However, the game is not without its share of bugs and glitches. While most developers punish players for taking advantage of these issues, Larian takes a completely different approach and wants to encourage “creativity” and experimentation within the community. Just last week, a developer for Once Human publicly shamed players for taking advantage of an in-game bug to access restricted areas; this method of handling the situation received major backlash from gamers. During a games conference in Sofia, Bulgaria, earlier in 2024, Larian gameplay scripter Mihail Kostov outlined the strategies for ensuring titles such as Baldur’s Gate 3 remain playable despite gamers trying their hardest to break the mechanics. A recording of said presentation was recently released to the public, with Kostov outlining how Baldur’s Gate 3 wants to “fuel and reward” player creativity rather than stamp it out of the game, stating, “We at Larian believe player creativity is great.” As further proof of this philosophy, Kostov outlined a particular instance within the game in which the devs wrote and recorded additional Lae’zel dialogue during Act 1 for players who discovered how to obtain a powerful weapon well before the game intended. “Let players keep the cool weapon,” Kostov said. “They found a way to exploit the game, let them have it. It’s awesome” While the gameplay scripter acknowledged that there are times when “player action may push a system to the extreme,” he believes this to be “one of the most fun” parts of developing a game, particularly one that maintains a dedicated and consistent player base. Given that Baldur’s Gate 3 continues to maintain a high player count despite new bugs appearing each week, it appears that their outlook on encouraging players to “exploit” these issues is paying off.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs explain why it launched without game-changing feature Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 developers Larian Studios have explained why the game launched without the ability to view dialogue in the first person, a feature that while tested, was soon shot down. Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3 has been nothing but a triumph for the gaming industry. The huge open-world RPG won countless game of the year awards for its endless creativity and non-linear storytelling, letting players choose how they play and craft their own journey through the lands of Faerun. Also part of the game’s success was its incredibly lengthy usage of cinematics and cutscenes, which helped enunciate and animate the story as you play through it. This lets you get even more immersed in the action at hand, keeping you constantly engaged in the plot. However, the devs have revealed one game-changing feature that didn’t make the cut when the title launched, a feature that would’ve let you experience the game from a first-person perspective. During a PAX West panel for Baldur’s Gate 3, Larian CEO Swen Vincke revealed that they considered a more intimate camera style when creating the RPG. “There was a moment when we were actually thinking of making the dialogues first-person,” the dev explained. “So we tried that out. That quickly got shot down.” In fact, in early access the devs “weren’t sure if cinematics were going to happen at all,” art director Alena Dubrovina elaborated. “We had a couple of proof of concepts and we were still like, OK are we doing it? Are we not doing it? Then we decided to do it.” Vincke chimed in, stating that the cinematics for Baldur’s Gate 3 were the biggest challenge the studio faced. “We had no idea what we were doing, because we were about 120 people and we ended up with 400, and a lot of that was driven by the sheer amount of cinematics that we had to put inside of the game.” This was a far cry from what the devs had done before, with other titles like Divinity Original Sin not being nearly as detailed. “That was quite a jump for us, and dealing with that was really, really, really complicated.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs explain how to fix Xbox deleting saves as players lose progress Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3’s developers announced a temporary workaround for the memory issues on Xbox Series X/S, allowing players to keep their saves. Xbox Series X/S fans had to wait a while before they could play Baldur’s Gate 3, as PC and PS5 players had access to the game over the summer, while the Xbox port was announced after The Game Awards, finally launching in December 2023. Unfortunately for the Xbox Series X/S owners of the world, their port of Baldur’s Gate 3 was riddled with save issues. Many fans reported their save data being deleted, which is extremely worrying for a game that can easily last over 100 hours for a single playthrough. The holiday season ended with no resolution for Baldur’s Gate 3’s save issues on Xbox Series X/S. Luckily, Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios has offered their own solution, though it requires a bit of messing around to get running. Baldur’s Gate 3 devs explain how to fix Baldur’s Gate 3 Xbox Series X/S save issues In a post on the official Larian Studios Twitter/X channel, the developers addressed the Baldur’s Gate 3 save issues that keep occurring on Xbox Series X/S. It’s possible to get around this by activating cross-platform saves in-game. To use this method, you need to create an account on Larian’s website, then in Baldur’s Gate 3, go to the Options setting in the main menu. Go to the Gameplay tab and select “cross-saves”, while linking your Larian and Xbox accounts. From this point on, your 5 most recent saves will be uploaded to Larian’s servers via cloud saving. If the bug occurs again, you will need to reactivate the cross-save functionality in Baldur’s Bate 3, giving you access to the most recent saves that were uploaded. It’s frustrating that this method is even necessary, but at least it offers one way around the save deletion issue. As mentioned, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a mammoth game with some difficult boss battles, so a way to keep your saves safe is welcome, at least for now. It’s unclear when Baldur’s Gate 3’s save issues will be fixed on Xbox Series X/S, but Larian is confident that it won’t take long. For the time being, fans will need to rely on Larian’s servers and cloud saves to ensure that their save file is banished to the Nine Hells.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs explain how mod support works on consoles Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 players anxiously await the arrival of official mod support as part of Patch 7‘s release in September, including those on console who finally have more details on how mods will work. While the developers previously shared that the Xbox and PlayStation versions of the game would be getting access to mods, fans weren’t sure how it would work since mods are largely used on PC. Larian Studios has helped clear up lingering questions and concerns, offering a simple explanation of what Baldur’s Gate 3 console players can look forward to doing when mod support finally arrives. Larian responded to an X user who asked if the mods will be coming to console. The studio clarified that PS5 and Xbox versions will have “curated mods” for players to install, though they “won’t be able to create mods using the toolkit.” This means that, while Xbox and PlayStation fans won’t have the full modding experience like PC players, they will still be able to use mods to change their game. Many console players seem fine with this arrangement, as seen on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit. One Reddit user said this is all they need, saying, “I’m honestly just excited for the basic ‘Bring everyone with you’ and to have a few extra classes/races as options. Give me that and I’ll be happy!” Other fans also explain that the ability to expand the game’s party size is truly the only mod they want to use, which is a testament to how well the game is designed in its base form. This is also reflected in one Baldur’s Gate 3 fans’ comment on the subreddit, “Larian just gets better and better.” Larian Studios continues to strike a great chord with its fanbase, and its clarification on how mods will work on consoles represents another win for the Baldur’s Gate 3 developer.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs explain how D&D homebrew rules impacted development Larian StudiosDuring a panel discussion on Baldur’s Gate 3’s development, Larian confessed to consulting D&D player forums on homebrew rules to make decisions on Fifth Edition mechanic changes. In general, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a pretty accurate recreation of Dungeons & Dragons 5e mechanics. However, translating any tabletop experience to a video game requires some adjustments. Developer Larian Studios took plenty of liberties, putting its own twists on 5e in the name of improving the player experience. During a PAX West panel, design director Nick Pechenin shared that, while the team initially “thought the job of the [combat and gameplay] designers was going to be easy” since there were plenty of 5e books to consult, they quickly learned D&D rules aren’t straightforward. In fact, Pechenin added “D&D has a wonderful community of creators, people who think very hard about the rules and try them out. We literally went through forums looking for homebrew rules… we went ‘Okay, so we’re not crazy. Some people do it, so maybe we can try it as well.’” Discussion of BG3’s design as it relates to D&D rules starts at 8:22. Pechenin specifically mentioned the 5e rule that magic users cannot cast both a full action and bonus action spell on the same turn as an example of a frequently-ignored rule the designers chose to drop based on D&D player discussions. It shouldn’t be too surprising that Larian looked to homebrew rules to decide how best to adapt tabletop D&D to Baldur’s Gate 3. After all, most tables use at least some homebrew rules to improve the experience or cater to their groups’ needs. Still, the idea of Larian devs wading through the wild world of D&D forums to support their ideas and make decisions is funny. The panel also discussed the impact that Baldur’s Gate 3 is already having on Dungeons & Dragons. Director and Larian CEO Swen Vincke mentioned weapon mastery, a new system introduced in the revised Player’s Handbook (2024) that greatly improves martial classes, as something the TTRPG has adopted from BG3. Other examples include the ability to drink potions as a bonus action and changes to spells like Cloud of Daggers, which Wizards of the Coast’s lead designers admit were influenced by their time playing Baldur’s Gate 3.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs confirm crossplay plans but advise fans not to hold their breath Larian StudiosCrossplay is coming to Baldur’s Gate 3 which is great news for prospective parties split across consoles and PC. However, Larian is hesitant to put a date on it as they iron things out. Baldur’s Gate 3 developers have come out of the woodwork recently to deliver some awesome tidbits. In particular, Director Swen Vincke recently discussed his openness to a level 13-20 experience and his next game. We won’t need to think on that for a while though as fans are devouring Baldur’s Gate 3 and it looks like they’ll continue to for years. Our own review calls the game “a once-in-a-decade fantasy RPG”, and part of the magic is sharing that experience with other players. Those hoping to party up across the console and PC battlelines can rejoice then because more info from devs has just surfaced. In an interview with Eurogamer, Larian’s Director of Publishing Michael Douse shared the studio’s intentions for crossplay in Baldur’s Gate 3. Baldur’s Gate 3 dev on crossplay “(Crossplay) was always in the planning, but we knew it wouldn’t be (ready) for launch,” Dowse said. “It’s in the roadmap, and though we have an idea of when we’d like to get it ready for, we don’t want to put a date on it until we’re sure.” Baldur’s Gate 3 has been out on PC since August and the recent September release on PS5 has been just as successful as the initial release. The game’s release on Xbox is being held up due to some complications in implementing split-screen on the Series S. It makes sense that Larian would want to focus on getting the game out on every platform before they dedicate too much time to crossplay. There’s no official date for the Xbox release but Larian have said they want to have Baldur’s Gate 3 on the console in 2023. Fortunately, Douse’s comments are a hard confirmation of crossplay for Baldur’s Gate 3 so while we’re in for a wait, it’s an inevitability. It’s an exciting prospect that players on PC, PS5, and eventually Xbox will be able to journey through the Forgotten Realms together. With the Xbox release planned for later in the year, it’s a safe bet to assume that Larian will begin focusing on crossplay shortly after. Baldur’s Gate 3’s cross-save feature means that players who have a PC but want to switch to the console later will be able to do so. Once an expected date for Baldur’s Gate 3 crossplay is announced by Larian we’ll be sure to report. In the meantime, we’ve got tons of other guides and info to get you across the game. Best Sorcerer build | Best Bard build | Best Rogue build | Best Fighter build | Best Ranger build | Best Barbarian build | Best Druid build | Best Warlock build | Best Wizard build | Baldur’s Gate 3: What’s the max level cap? | Best Baldur’s Gate 3 classes tier list | How to revive characters in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Can you multiclass in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Baldur’s Gate 3 Soul Coins: How to get them & what they are | Baldur’s Gate 3: Fastest ways to get XP & level up | Baldur’s Gate 3: How to respec your character | Baldur’s Gate 3 Karmic Dice: What are they?

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs completely rewrote Shadowheart to “dial down” her sassiness Larian StudiosOne of Baldur’s Gate 3’s greatest strengths is the varied and extensive cast of memorable characters that confront the player during their three-act journey. One of the most important is Shadowheart, but she was nearly a very different person from the one featured in the finished game. For the most part, Shadowheart is beloved by the Baldur’s Gate community. A big part of that is her strong personality, blending humor, solid advice and, for lack of a better term, a certain amount of sassiness. According to GamesRadar+, that sassiness was considerably more pronounced in earlier iterations of the script. Speaking at a BAFTA panel in the UK, director Swen Vincke confirmed that the writers may have pushed the character beyond her likeable limits initially. “We thought Shadowheart, in the beginning when she was very sassy, she was great because our main thing was, we’re going to create a party of people who distrust each other, and then they’re going to grow to trust each other,” Vincke said. He then went on to recall an instance in which a senior developer approached him and simply said, “I really don’t like Shadowheart.” When pressed on whether this had led to the character being toned down, Vincke confirmed it did, saying, “Yeah, heavily dialed down.” With the benefit of hindsight, the decision to change Shadowheart seems to have been a good one. The character is one of the most recognizable from the third entry in the Baldur’s Gate series, and she remains one of the most popular romance options for players. Larian Studios has now moved on to an as-yet-unannounced new project. What we do know is that it won’t be Baldur’s Gate 4, as the developer confirms they are moving away from the franchise, much to the chagrin of the player base.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs brought to tears responding to son of player memorialized in game XThe team behind Baldur’s Gate 3 has responded to a fan’s letter by memorializing their father in the game in a meaningful way. Baldur’s Gate 3 has all kinds of characters and secrets tucked away in corners that players may easily miss if not looking out for them. While most of people assume they’re lighthearted references or Easter eggs, some serve a much more personal purpose. Now, the Baldur’s Gate 3 devs have shared their emotional reaction to a letter from a fan whose father is memorialized in the game. Baldur’s Gate 3 devs share tear-jerking letter from fan The story was shared on X, where the initial letter written to Larian Studios was shown. The letter details how the fan and their father were excited for Baldurs Gate 3, and, unfortunately, their father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. The thread was posted by Rachel Quirke, a writer for Larian, who said: “There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when we read that letter… Really happy we got to honor the mighty mindflayer hunter.” There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when we read that letter, and I volunteered to write Golbraith (I’m not super writer btw, and I’ll respect their privacy unless they want to reveal themselves). Really happy we got to honour the mighty mindflayer hunter ❤️ https://t.co/FefUkkbpWu — Rachel Quirke (@quirkiltons) January 4, 2024 The player explained that they were thankful for the Early Access period of the game to enjoy together before the disease progressed further. They went on to share another letter, explaining how Larian reached out to this fan and asked if they wanted their father to be memorialized in the game in some way. They naturally said yes, and when the game came out, Larian told the fan where they could look for their father’s reference. Expecting some small plague or book, the player was amazed to find an entire character named Golbraith, a retired Mindflayer hunter who shares a deep connection with his son. The fan thanked Larian for this and noted how excited their father was to hear about the reference. Quirke explains that she was the one who wrote the story for Golbraith, though she was not the original writer who reached out to the fan. The Baldur’s Gate 3 community is also joining in on the emotions of the story, with one user saying, “When I found this out I bawled my eyes out.” The whole situation is a touching reminder of how gaming can be more than just mindless entertainment.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs are still amazed by the number of people playing Larian StudiosLarian’s Director of Publishing has said he is shocked by the numbers Baldurs Gate 3 is still garnering, even seven months after its initial release. Baldurs Gate 3 has been something to behold since its launch last August. The game won many Game of the Year awards, and it did it in one of the most packed years for quality to date. Larian’s epic RPG has had a long-lasting tail and shows no signs of slowing down, with constant fan art and TikToks still rampant on social media. It’s not hard to understand why this is happening either. Ever since its release, it’s given players an unmatched RPG experience, and it’s clear it’s going to be remembered and used as a measuring stick for years. This is somewhat of a surprise as well. The game had been out in early access before its release, but it wasn’t until the game came out that it saw an explosion of popularity. Even a year ago, the franchise was a relatively forgotten CRPG series from the turn of the century. Now, it’s one of the most recognizable in the whole medium. That success, especially its continued success, would have been hard to predict – so much so it’s even surprising Larian themselves. Baldur’s Gate 3 continues to do great In a post on X/Twitter, Larian’s Director of Publishing Michael Douse celebrated how well the game continues to do seven months after its launch. He cites that the game was played by 640k on Steam alone in just the last week. He said: “644,205 average daily players in the last 7 days is still so insane to me this far from launch (just on Steam)”. Of course, that number only accounts for those on PC. The game launched on PS5 and has just recently gotten an Xbox version, meaning that it is likely still actively being played by around a million people every week (if numbers are consistent between PC and consoles.) Baldurs Gate 3’s greatness will likely carry on for a while longer as there are no signs of it dropping off yet. However, even when that does happen, it will live in the memory of fans for years to come, likely go down as one of the best games ever made.

Baldur’s Gate 3 devs announce new feature to address major co-op issue Larian StudiosDevelopers of the hit CRPG Baldur’s Gate 3 have announced a new quality-of-life feature aimed at addressing a major co-op issue players have been experiencing. Baldur’s Gate 3 has quickly become one of the biggest games of the year. The Dungeons and Dragons-inspired title from Larian Studios has blown away the internet, soaring its way up both critical and commercial charts. Throughout the game’s several acts, players traverse through various zones, interact with countless NPCs, and potentially romance a few of their companions along the way too. However, the game’s lengthy campaign can be to its detriment as well, in some cases. Many players have spoken up about starting a co-op campaign with their buddies, only to have their custom character remain if they choose to stop playing. This means that as soon as you start a co-op campaign, you’ve essentially locked in those characters for the entire run. Fortunately, developers Larian Studios have been listening in to feedback, and are planning on implementing a feature to address this soon. In a recent community update posted to the Baldur’s Gate 3 Steam page, developers revealed a new feature titled “Withers’ Wardrobe of Wayward Friends”, which they’re hoping to launch very soon. This feature will allow players to get rid of co-op party members who join your campaign and are no longer playing. This lets players continue their run with or without their co-op buddy. Players have requested this feature since the game’s launch, even going so far as to create their own method of doing this through scripts. Now with Withers’ Wardrobe, this will be a problem of the past. The developers also mentioned that they were working on a feature that would allow players to customize their character’s appearance after they’ve started their campaign, however, this does not yet have a release date.

Baldur’s Gate 3 developer reveals Orin kidnapping was originally very different Larian StudiosOne of the writers who worked on Baldur’s Gate 3 has opened up with some interesting new information about earlier versions of the story, which would have featured a new target for Orin in Act 3. The last act of Baldur’s Gate 3 ups the stakes significantly. Not only are you constantly brushing shoulders with the remaining chosen of the Dead Three, but your camp, which has been a safe space throughout the entire game, becomes a much more threatening place. Once you arrive at the city of Baldur’s Gate, Orin, chosen of Bhaal, will kidnap one of your camp dwellers and take their place, and it’s up to you to rescue them from her lair. However, in an interview with IGN, Lead Writer Adam Smith goes into detail about how Orin originally always targeted the character you had romanced, but said it was later changed after the idea proved to be unpopular. Larian Studios dev reveals Orin originally targeted your romance Speaking to IGN’s Kat Bailey, Smith said that the change also meant that players didn’t feel forced to instantly confront one of the strongest enemies in the game the moment they discovered who got kidnapped. He said: “That was a creative risk, the kidnapping of a companion a thing. Once you do it, and you don’t go after them right away, you lose a whole bunch of story depending on how you’re going to take it. But at the same time, we needed something where the stakes were high. “So that’s why we did it that way, and we had a lot of rules that changed over time. Originally it was always your romantic partner, which wasn’t very popular. “It can happen still, which usually send you on a beeline to the Bhaal Temple, which has its problems then because you’re rushing toward a very high-level area, maybe a little bit too early.” Currently, the only characters who can be kidnapped are Halsin, Minthara, Gale and Lae’zel, provided one of them is in camp. If none of them are, Orin will kidnap Yenna. For all the latest news and updates on Baldur’s Gate 3, check out what one player new to the game decided to do with Shadowheart’s artifact.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev shares most popular multiclass builds Larian StudiosLarian Studios has revealed the top 20 most popular multiclass builds in Baldur’s Gate 3, which includes some strong and unexpected combinations. Baldur’s Gate 3 really lets players create whatever fantasy characters they want. The ability to multiclass characters plays a huge role in this, allowing players to combine skills from different classes in creative ways. With 12 classes in the game, 46 subclasses, and the option to take levels in as many different classes as you want, there are lots and lots of potential multiclass builds. Now, developer Larian Studios has revealed the 20 most popular multiclass combinations in Baldur’s Gate 3, even detailing why some work so well together. A lot of Baldur’s Gate 3 multiclass builds involve Paladins In a PlayStation Blog post, Larian shared the top 20 multiclass combinations in Baldur’s Gate 3. According to their stats, Rogue/Ranger at the top followed by Barbarian/Fighter, Barbarian/Paladin, Cleric/Paladin, and Fighter/Paladin. Rogue/Ranger makes a lot of sense for the top spot. Neither class is particularly heavy-hitting or durable, but the Rogue’s Sneak Attack and skill proficiencies create a character who can deal good amounts of damage from a distance while also being able to hold their own in conversations. Also notable is how many times Paladin makes the list; of the 20 combos, the class is involved in seven of them. Considering Paladins combine physical strength with magical abilities, it’s not too surprising that players would want to use it to enhance their abilities or give them more options. In addition to the infographic, Larian chose to highlight five combinations and what makes them work so well together. Worth highlighting is the Monk/Rogue, which Larian suggests also adding two Fighter levels to towards the end of the game. The Monk’s ability to dish out lots of smaller attacks meshes well with the Thief Rogue’s extra bonus action, which allows you to make additional unarmed attacks. Adding Fighter into the mix for Action Surge means the character will be able to hit up to 12 times in one turn, and the Tavern Brawler feat will make those Unarmed Strikes deal even more damage. As in tabletop Dungeons & Dragons, multiclassing is always a trade-off. Since the level cap of 12 applies to the total number of levels in each class combined, dipping into another class means missing out on powerful abilities that higher levels unlock. Still builds like these – and the ones on our own Baldur’s Gate 3 multiclass tier list – show that compromise can be incredibly worthwhile. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev reveals there is actually a tutorial in the game Larian StudiosIn an interview, Larian Studios’ boss and Baldur’s Gate 3 director Swen Vincke said the game does have a very long tutorial: Act 1. Baldur’s Gate 3 is a huge game that gives players infinite options for how to take on its challenges. All of this freedom can be quite intimidating for new players, especially those unfamiliar with this kind of RPG. Making things harder for these players is the fact that Baldur’s Gate doesn’t have a formal tutorial that walks players through all of the options and systems in place. According to Vincke, Baldur’s Gate 3’s first act is actually designed to be a very long tutorial. Baldur’s Gate 3 Act 1 teaches players everything they need to know In an interview with PC Gamer, Larian Studios CEO and game director Swen Vincke made the argument that there actually is a tutorial in Baldur’s Gate 3, and a very long one at that. As he said, “Systems are being shown to you. The AI shows you a lot of things and makes you realize [how they work], maybe sometimes subconsciously, but you figure things out. You discover increasingly sophisticated challenges, where you will always find a way, because there’s always multiple solutions, anyway. But you might discover and stumble upon something that’s possible, and from now on, it becomes part of the arsenal that you can use to play the game.” Baldur’s Gate 3’s approach puts the power in players’ hands to learn how the game works on their own. Rather than a clearly designated level that explicitly spells out how, for example, spell slots, bonus actions, and armor class work, it wants players to make these discoveries for themselves. Vincke also explained how leaving these discoveries to the player encourages subsequent playthroughs, saying “people spend 30 hours before they realize they can move an object…then maybe in the second playthrough, they discover that they can stack things to make stairs, and so they can climb on top of things. Now suddenly, the third dimension becomes much more accessible.” All this may make for a less approachable game, especially for those who aren’t coming to Baldur’s Gate 3 with a wealth of Dungeons & Dragons knowledge. However, it’s definitely more fulfilling and encourages experimentation.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev releases advent calendar with puzzles and TTRPG rewards Larian StudiosDeveloper Larian Studios is capping off its 2023 with a Baldur’s Gate 3-themed advent calendar full of puzzles, story, and rewards. Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios is giving fans another way to celebrate the holiday season. Following the studio’s big wins at The Game Awards 2023 and the surprise launch of its Xbox version, Larian has released an advent calendar based on the RPG that, between now and December 24, will present players with rewards for solving puzzles. Here’s how to access it and what to expect. Baldur’s Gate 3 advent calendar offers festive story and other rewards Larian Studios announced the celebration, titled “A Very Baldur’s Gate Christmas,” on December 13. For the following 12 days, fans will be able to access new squares on the advent calendar. Each one features a simple matching puzzle with cards featuring Baldur’s Gate 3 artwork depicting things like mindflayers, wildlife found across the Sword Coast and Auntie Ethel. Completing the puzzles will earn the player that day’s reward. As promised in the announcement, one reward is “a festive story with a Larian twist,” with the first chapter of a story called “How the Gremishka Stole Christmas” available for day one. Larian has also promised “rewards to spice up your tabletop gaming” for those who participate, though what exactly those are is unclear. Those who want to see what’s in store can access later days by changing the date in the URL, though it should be noted that the actual rewards for Day 3 and on don’t seem to be available yet. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev explains performance issues ahead of Patch 5 fix Larian StudiosLarian Studios has explained why so many Baldur’s Gate 3 players are facing slowdown issues following Patch 4, with a bug fix planned for this week’s Patch 5. Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios has announced that the game’s next update, Patch 5, will be released later this week. Like other patches, it seems that this will be a big one that addresses some issues players have been reporting following Patch 4. This includes a fix to Astarion’s kissing animation, which was promised in Hotfix 11’s patch notes. Patch 5 will also fix an issue that caused Baldur’s Gate 3 to lag heavily in Act 3 to the point that some called it unplayable, especially on PlayStation 5. Ahead of the update’s release, Larian has explained what was causing the issue and says it was able to sort it out. Baldur’s Gate 3’s Act 3 performance issues were caused by a Patch 4 change In a statement shared with IGN, Larian explained in detail what was causing those frustrating performance issues fans have been facing since the last major patch. As they say, “In Patch 4 we introduced a fix that would prevent the Scrying Eyes in Moonrise Towers from immediately calling the guards on you when stealing, even if you were sneaking, or invisible for example.” However, this attempt to fix the problem introduced another one, “causing unnoticed thefts and acts of vandalism to remain stuck forever within the ‘did anyone see me’ pipeline, rather than timing out and moving on, as is intended.” Larian continues to explain the problem in Dungeons & Dragons terms: “Essentially, your dungeon master – in a real-world sense – constantly thinks about the acts of theft and violence the player keeps doing, without ever moving on or verbalising them. Mulling on it ad infinitum.” This “eventually bogged down the game,” especially for players who continue to commit crimes, as “the game is trying to keep that all up to date and in memory… Essentially, the dungeon master becomes unable to operate.” Baldur’s Gate 3 Act 3 is already known for having performance issues, many of which are explained by the sheer size and scope of the titular city. However, things have definitely gotten worse following Patch 4. With that in mind, it’s good to see that Larian has seemingly pinpointed the issue and is nearly ready to fix it. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev explains game design reasons for “The Realm of Naked Men” Larian StudiosAfter Baldur’s Gate 3 players noticed nude character models offscreen during character creation, Larian Studios has explained the technical reasons for “The Realm of Naked Men.” Baldur’s Gate 3 is full of secrets and mysteries to uncover, though not all of these are ones developer Larian Studios probably expected players to find. One example is the swarm of nude character models (joined by one fully dressed default Dark Urge) players have noticed standing just off-screen during character creation. Though normally not visible, those who encounter issues with the game and mods are transported to what fans have dubbed “The Realm of Naked Men.” Now, after joining in on the fun on social media, Larian has explained why these character models are there. Baldur’s Gate’s nude character creation models are there for technical reasons After responding to a tweet pointing out the so-called “Realm of Naked Men,” Larian actually explained the game design reasons for all the off-screen character models. Speaking to GamesRadar+, the developer revealed these men are a technical necessity. “Primarily, they are used as VO dummies,” Larian said. “When you select your voice in the character creator, it needs to be assigned to a physical dummy character in order to play. So, one of these random naked dudes will pipe up from the shadows, playing samples of your chosen voice.” Larian also explained the secondary purpose for the men is to “have a physical avatar assigned to the player in the background, while the player creates their own Tav.” None of this explains why the character models are naked, why there’s a default Dark Urge among them, or why some have genitals while others look like Ken dolls. Still, Larian’s explanation does give some interesting insight into game development and the technical details studios need to accomodate for that players normally don’t get to see. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev defends Microsoft for ‘misjudging’ the game before release Larian StudiosIn the wake of a massive Microsoft leak revealing its thoughts on Baldur’s Gate 3 ahead of launch, Larian Studios’ Director of Publishing is defending the company for underestimating the game. The Microsoft vs. FTC case is bringing Baldur’s Gate 3 back into the spotlight, as leaked documents have revealed what the company thought of the game ahead of its wildly successful launch. In addition to the news that Xbox considered paying Larian $5 million to get Baldur’s Gate 3 on Game Pass, an email leaked in which the game was called a “Second-run Stadia PC RPG.” Baldur’s Gate 3 fans are obviously rushing to the game and developer Larian Studios’ defense. However, the studio’s Director of Publishing Michael Douse is defending Microsoft in the wake of these comments coming to light, instead focusing on Larian’s mission. Larian dev says Xbox wasn’t the only one who underestimated Baldur’s Gate 3 before launch In response to an article criticizing Microsoft for misjudging Baldur’s Gate 3, Douse pointed out that they were far from the only ones who thought that way. As Douse says, this “Comes with the [CRPG] genre,” and Larian faced similar low expectations with Divinity: Original Sin II. Though he followed up with an acknowledgment that many players have long believed in Baldur’s Gate 3, the data and history meant that the team “just had to take giant spooky leaps” and hope for the best. Since its full launch, Baldur’s Gate 3 has shocked the industry by far exceeding sales expectations and garnering universal praise from critics and gamers alike. Baldur’s Gate 3 is one of the best-reviewed games of all time and a consistent frontrunner in early Game of the Year discussions, something no one would have expected a couple of months ago. Despite the shock, though, it’s not surprising Larian fans would be so quick to criticize Microsoft given the game’s messy history with Xbox. Baldur’s Gate 3 is not yet available on Xbox due to technical limitations of the Series S and Microsoft’s initial refusal to compromise on feature parity. Though Xbox eventually changed course and the game is expected to release on Series X|S later this year without parity, that didn’t prevent some vocal Xbox fans from criticizing the game and accusing Larian of favoring Sony. The tension there is understandable and getting renewed attention following the leaks. The Stadia mention in particular is pretty brutal given the fate of that platform. Still, it looks like Larian Studios is taking it all in stride. In hindsight, it’s clear the lack of a Game Pass deal worked out for the developers, who certainly would have ended up losing money by giving it to subscribers for just $5 million. Plus, while the kinds of games Larian makes aren’t your typical mainstream hits, Baldur’s Gate 3 has shown that an underestimated game from a traditionally niche genre can be a surprise hit. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev defends Bethesda amid Starfield criticism for lack of “passion” Larian Studios / BethesdaBaldur’s Gate 3 and Starfield are both undeniable GOTY contenders and fair comparison between the two is unavoidable. Despite this, Baldur’s Gate 3’s dev team won’t stand for unfair criticism of Bethesda’s employees. Baldur’s Gate 3 has been an unqualified success becoming the second biggest PC launch of 2023. It’s also claimed the title of one of the most concurrently played games of all time on Steam. Despite a lukewarm reception out the gate, Starfield has also had a huge launch breaking records for Bethesda and Xbox. While soon enjoying success of its own, Starfield has certainly been the more divisive of the two games. While neither title is above reproach, devs want critiques above the belt. Larian Studios’ Director of Publishing Michael Douse called out former WoW developer Mark Kerns for his low blows against Starfield’s creative team. Kerns published side-by-side images of review scores for Baldur’s Gate 3 and Starfield in an effort to draw comparisons on Twitter. Kerns asserted that the disparity between scores was a result of “the difference that passion makes”. Douse was having absolutely none of it and quickly put Kerns in his place calling the statement a “disingenuous oversimplification”. “It’s not true, or right, [to] suggest that the average developer at Bethesda lacks passion,” Douse went on. Ever the magnanimous individual, Douse also attempted to shut down any dogpiling of Kerns in the replies. “I think he and I have similar views on AAA but it’s a leadership problem that shouldn’t be associated with the development teams who pour their hearts into their projects,” he clarified. When other users encouraged him to “own that clown”, Douse kept a lid on that too, reiterating there’s “no need for that either”. Onlookers like YouTuber Mischief have called Douse’s defense of the hardworking Bethesda team “based”. Larian’s team has garnered a lot of goodwill following the launch of Baldur’s Gate 3. Fans of the game have praised their transparency and philosophies on development. Bethesda’s development team has also shown they’re willing to listen to Starfield players and what they want for the game. Fans of Starfield have rallied around Douse to defend it.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev confirms highly requested character change coming in next patch Larian StudiosLarian Studios has announced Baldur’s Gate 3’s upcoming Patch 3 will finally allow players to change their character’s appearance during the game, thanks to a new ‘Magic Mirror’. Baldur’s Gate 3 has a very detailed character creator that allows players to create the Dungeons & Dragons character of their dreams. While the game provides a variety of premade Origin characters to choose from, there are a variety of D&D races and plenty of options to customize an original character. However, one major flaw is that players cannot edit their appearance after starting the game. Developer Larian Studios noticed early on that it was something players wanted and promised the feature would be implemented in an update. We finally have word on when the highly requested feature is coming – and players won’t have to wait long. Baldur’s Gate 3 Patch 3 introduces Magic Mirror for changing Tav’s appearance Larian announced the option to change your Baldur’s Gate 3 character’s appearance during the game will be added in Patch 3. This is set to release on September 22, a slight delay from the originally announced date of September 21. As for how it works, players will have the option to visit a Magic Mirror in their Camp. With it, you’ll have the option to change their appearance, voice, and pronouns. There are some limitations in place. Players will not be able to change their race or body type, and only player-created characters (or “Tav”s) can be edited. As Larian jokes “they’re all *very* particular about their hair.” This announcement is sure to be celebrated by players. Since launch, fans have been asking for the option to edit their appearance after starting the game, an omission that felt odd considering players can change just about anything else about their character. It also marks one of the first major player-requested changes to be implemented in Baldur’s Gate 3, which is a good sign for the game’s future. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev assures players they won’t need scalpers for Deluxe Edition Larian StudiosOne of Baldur’s Gate 3’s developers has assured fans that plenty of Deluxe Editions will be available, so they won’t need to rely on scalpers. Baldur’s Gate 3 is an incredibly popular game, even though it’s a digital-only title on two platforms. This will change soon, as the Baldur’s Gate 3 Deluxe Edition releases a physical version of the game and brings it to Xbox Series X/S for the first time. Unfortunately, this kind of release will attract the attention of scalpers, who have already been the bane of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S generation. The limited physical release of one of the year’s biggest games will likely be attacked by scalping bots as soon as it goes online. Those who want to own a physical version of Baldur’s Gate 3 won’t have to pay more than they should, as a key figure in Larian Studios is promising that the Deluxe Edition won’t be a short-term deal and everyone will have a chance to own one. Baldur’s Gate 3 players won’t need to rely on scalpers, as there are plenty of copies of the Deluxe Edition on the way Larian Studios’ head of publishing, Michael Douse, has addressed the issue of scalpers on their Twitter/X page. According to Douse, players won’t need to deal with scalpers, as the Baldur’s Gate 3 Deluxe Edition will be released in waves. This means that there will be several releases of the Baldur’s Gate 3 Deluxe Edition going into next year. If demand keeps up, there should be enough for everyone without resorting to scalpers or online reseller sites. The Baldur’s Gate 3 Deluxe Edition is also available exclusively through the Larian Store, which means the company controls how the stock (and any future waves) will be sold. Those interested in owning the Baldur’s Gate 3 Deluxe Edition should know it costs 79.99 USD. While owning a physical disc for Baldur’s Gate 3 will be the main draw for many fans, the Deluxe Edition also comes with different items, including a cloth map and three soundtrack CDs, explaining the higher price. Baldur’s Gate 3 is still available to purchase digitally, so the Deluxe Edition isn’t necessary, even if scalpers managed to swipe some. Some fans just prefer to own a game for their collection without needing to tie it to a digital account that could be lost over the years.

Baldur’s Gate 3 decides that Astarion is canonically stupid Larian Studios / DexertoOne of Baldur’s Gate 3’s most popular companions has had his head analysed, and the results are clear: the guy’s brain is smooth. Astarion has been a fan-favorite party member ever since Baldur’s Gate 3 was first released. He’s become one of the most recognizable characters in gaming in a very short amount of time, and voice actor Neil Newbon was even nominated for best performance at this year’s Game Awards. It’s gotten to the point where Astarion makes up a majority of all Baldur’s Gate fanfiction, all on his own. Players are drawn to his personality and backstory as a vampire spawn, and his narrative only gets stronger as the game progresses. It’s just as well people don’t necessarily love Astarion for his brain power, because, as some players have been discovering, he’s confirmed to have a very smooth brain in the lore of Baldur’s Gate 3. Astarion canonically has a smooth brain in Baldur’s Gate 3 In a post on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit, one player showed off some dialogue that revealed just how smart Astarion really is. The narration reads: “Astarion’s sweet brain may be a bit less wrinkled than the rest, but you hunger for its teasing cells.” Setting aside the dramatic mindflayer obsession with eating his brain, it’s clear that Astarion isn’t really the sharpest tool in camp- though to be fair, the Baldur’s Gate 3 companions have about three brain cells combined, and Lae’zel usually gets to use them. Several players thought the description was pretty accurate, with one commenter saying: “Honestly, I’ve always just seen Astarion as not that smart. I love him to death and think he’s one of the best-written characters in the game, but he’s making huge mistakes because he’s a desperate animal fighting for his life while backed into a corner.” For more news and updates on Baldur’s Gate 3, check out this player’s bizarre experience in the new Honor Mode added in Patch 5.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dataminer uncovers extra Shadowheart hugs & lost dialogue Larian StudiosA YouTuber was able to find several inaccessible bits of Baldur’s Gate 3 content that includes more reactions from Tav and the Origin characters, as well as interesting scenes for Shadowheart and Minthara fans. Baldur’s Gate 3 is a huge game, but developer comments and data mines tell us that it could have been even bigger. The game contains plenty of shelved content, often under “IMPOSSIBLE” flags that prevent players from accessing it. YouTuber SlimX shared some newly discovered cut content in a 15-minute video featuring various fully voiced character interactions that are currently impossible to trigger through gameplay. Among the scenes are Origin character and avatar reactions to entering the Underdark for the first time from the Grymforge, extra narrator lines celebrating the player’s heroism after the final battle, and companion reactions to Gale staring toward the river at the end of the game. There’s also an interaction with Minthara that’s meant to occur if the player knocks the drow Paladin out to recruit her later. In it, she asks the player why they chose to spare her life despite being an enemy at the time. Early notes for Patch 7, which will be released in September, include “Minthara will now react if you knock her out in Act I.” Considering players have reported plenty of other Minthara-related bugs since Patch 5 added this new way to get her to join the party, there’s a good chance this scene was meant to be accessible sooner. Most interesting, though, are plenty of moments related to Shadowheart. First, there’s an extra dialogue where she discusses her makeover – assuming you got her to spare the Nightsong and renounce Shar. Here, she shares that the transformation was meant as a “gesture” to show that she doesn’t belong to Shar and, if asked, explains that her subterfuge training gave her the skills to dye her own hair. More importantly, for those who want to give Shadowheart all the love she deserves, there are also two inaccessible hugs with god’s favorite princess that take place after the Nightsong incident. It’s not clear why any of these scenes were cut, but considering that they don’t actually impact or contradict anything in Baldur’s Gate 3’s plot, it’s possible that more will be reintroduced in a future update.

Baldur’s Gate 3 dataminer finds Wyll improvements are coming Larian StudiosA Baldur’s Gate 3 player has uncovered new dialogue related to the Origin character and companion Wyll that should help flesh out his storyline. Out of Baldur’s Gate 3‘s Origin characters and companions, most would agree that Wyll got the short end of the stick. While he does have plenty of fans who love his mature and “Wyll-adjusted” romance, the Warlock has significantly less content than the rest based on the number of his voice lines. Others have noted the quality is also lacking in some places, with fewer romance scenes and a lack of companion reactions to major moments in his arc. Fortunately for those who have been saying Wyll deserves better, Larian seems to have heard their cries, as a dataminer has found evidence that improvements are in the works. Note, spoilers for Wyll’s questline to follow. Dataminer finds more companion reactions to Wyll’s questline Shared by ShivaDF on Reddit, it looks like the recent Patch 4 added some currently inaccessible lines in which companions react to Wyll’s transformation. Currently, only Karlach reacts after Mizora appears and punishes him with devilish features. While it makes sense for her to respond given the history between those characters, it’s long struck fans as odd that no one else has anything to say about Wyll’s patron showing up and making him sprout horns. Now, though, the game’s script includes lines where the other characters react to Wyll’s new look – including one from Shadowheart where she mentions Baldur’s Gate 3’s most questionable weapon. There’s even a conversation where Astarion discusses Wyll’s horns with an Origin Karlach, indicating that the reactions go beyond the companion’s. While these are not yet voiced and cannot be accessed through normal gameplay, it seems like it’s only a matter of time until they are incorporated. What’s not clear is if more changes are planned that would help bring the volume and quality of Wyll’s content in line with other characters, but this is undoubtedly a step in the right direction. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge writer apologizes for ‘fumbling’ Gortash romance Larian StudiosThe writer behind Baldur’s Gate 3’s Dark Urge apologized to fans who ship the character with the villainous Gortash for the lack of a canon romance. Perhaps no character in Baldur’s Gate 3 has been as controversial as Enver Gortash. The leader of the Cult of the Absolute and Chosen of Bane, God of Tyranny, has plenty of fans who want to see him get a better ending. At the same time, other players don’t understand the hype surrounding Gortash, with many mercilessly mocking the fact that he’s described in-game as a “handsome young man with an easy smile.” Beyond that, others have called for the game to make the Jason Isaacs-voiced villain a romance option, specifically for the Dark Urge Origin character with whom he has a long backstory. Now, Baudelaire Welch, Baldur’s Gate 3’s romance and companion design lead who also wrote the Dark Urge’s story, has admitted they would have done things differently if they’d known how players would react to the characters. In an interview with Eurogamer, Welch admitted they “believe in the Dark Urge x Gortash ship wholeheartedly,” though they “never saw it coming” during development. That largely seems to be due to the writers imagining Gortash in a very different way from what’s in the final product. “I think we always imagined that Gortash was going to be an 80 year-old man over the course of development,” Welch said. However, things changed after the team saw Gortash’s character model and heard Jason Isaac’s performance. That led Welch to say, “I so, so, so wish that I had seen that coming and added some optional hints of reactivity into that whole thing.” Fans of the non-canon Dark Urge/Gortash romance were quick to share quotes from the interview, which prompted Welch to respond, “Sorry I fumbled the aging scene band frontman x bad dragon you guys, at least you know I ship it.” Unfortunately for those fans, Larian has made it very clear that no Gortash romance is in the works. In developer updates ahead of Patch 7, the team went so far as to say, “Listen, he’s a complicated guy who’s busy contemplating the minutia of death cult office politics. Babygurl doesn’t have time to kiss.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 player leaves fans shocked after Dark Urge “sleepover” Larian StudiosA screenshot from one BG3 player’s Dark Urge run showcases what someone has described as a “sleepover” with corpses. Every Baldur’s Gate 3 player begins their run with a blank slate for a character, someone the user can mold throughout the game to their liking. However, those who opt for a Dark Urge playthrough wind up with a character who has a predetermined story and dark tendencies. Setting aside the penchant for killing, playing with a Dark Urge protagonist boasts several benefits. There’s a new character to meet, additional voice lines, and companion interactions that are otherwise impossible to experience. Some people may lean a little too hard into the Dark Urge, though, so much so that they find themselves surrounded by a sea of dead bodies. BG3 player shares shocking Dark Urge screenshot A Redditor named Otter-Insanity recently posted a “group picture” of the characters they met while playing Dark Urge. Upon closer inspection, however, viewers will notice that the picture in question depicts hundreds of corpses lying on a floor. Part of the poster’s caption reveals the following, “I couldn’t get everyone in frame, but there are over 700 people in these pics.” Evidently, someone had no problem succumbing to the Dark Urge. Of course, people in the comments are having a field day with the morbid imagery. One person responded with a sleepover joke, writing, “Oh that’s cute, you’re all having a sleepover!” Others chose to play a game of ‘Where’s Waldo,’ though few were happy with what they found. Someone who spotted fan-favorite character Lae’zel commented, “Is that … Is that Lae’zel at the bottom?! YOU MONSTER!” The original poster defended themselves by saying she tried to kill them first. In response to another question, the BG3 player explained how they managed to gather all of their Dark Urge victims in one place. “After every battle, I’d have to make multiple trips back to camp to store them all,” they divulged. The user added that a weight mod proved especially helpful in this regard. It seems building a house of corpses isn’t exactly an easy feat.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge runs can go awry if you get too in character Larian StudiosThe Dark Urge is just one of many character paths in Baldur’s Gate 3, but it might not be a good idea to get too into the role as it can make your runs go horribly wrong. One of the many strengths of Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3 is the sheer amount of choices and variety the game offers players. You can quite literally play however you want, with the game accommodating for whatever strategy you might choose. This also reflects how you build your character, which really immerses you in Faerun. There’s a specific character origin that greatly alters the way you play, and that’s the Dark Urge. With no memory of your past, all you know is your thirst for murder and carnage. And while it’s great to get into the fantasy of the character, sometimes resisting the urge to massacre your party might be a good thing, as discovered by one player. On their first-ever Dark Urge playthrough, Reddit user MisterSpikes had plans for Gale. As a “hot AF” wood elf Paladin, they planned to romance the wizard from Waterdeep. Little did they know that the Dark Urge has a couple of bonus options when it comes to dialogue, one of which includes thinking about flat-out murdering your companions. So when they came across a dialogue option to “Fantasize about hacking off [Gale’s] hand”, they thought, “What’s the harm in a little fantasy?” Of course, there was a lot of harm in that little fantasy, as that option results in your Tav viciously chopping off his hand in a murderous daze. As expected, Gale was not too pleased to have his hand dismembered, with Spikes no longer able to recruit the companion to their party. “Kinda raging about that, but it was pretty damn funny.” At least one Redditor looked on the bright side, joking that Spikes has “got a part of him with you at all times at least.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge player wipes out entire map with OP build Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 is one of the most complex games when it comes to builds and its variety. Hence, there is no limit to how powerful you can get. As it happens, one player managed to reach such a level as they used their Dark Urge build, which allowed them to wipe out the entire map with ease. Baldur’s Gate 3 is one of the most complex games when it comes to character builds. The game gives you a lot of freedom to experiment and become creative, thereby unlocking the true potential of your class or character. As it happens, one player managed to do that, with their Dark Urge build where they made it so powerful, that they were able to clear out the map with ease. Even though this player claimed that part of it was an accident, they were shocked at how murderous you can become in this game. Baldur’s Gate 3 player accidentally wipes out map with broken Dark Urge build The discussion regarding the top was started by a Reddit user Squid Supremacy Artificer. The user posted, “So I’m playing this absolutely OP dark urge paladin warlock, and I hacked off Gale’s hand, killed the thieves in act 1, killed Karlach with Wyll, took her head, then gave it to the paladins and also killed the paladins.” They continued, “I promised Minthara we’ll raid the Grove, then I waited for the druids to close it, the bridge is littered with tiefling corpses, then I proceeded to exterminate the goblin camp and kill every goblin and Minthara anyway.” They concluded, “I’m truly shocked at how horrible you can be in this game.” Other players joined into the conversation as one of them commented, “I feel like at this point, if you haven’t already, you should make a point of blowing up the Crèche (literally, you can do that). Keep the genocide ball rolling!” Another user chimed in, “Is this what you call murder hobo?” One user also mentioned, “I’m there on my current Durge minus Minthara, because I’m trying to recruit her. Gale, dead at the portal. Karlach, dead by the river. Wyll, dead at the grove. Arabella, dead in the grove. Alfira, dead at camp. Lae’zel, dead in camp. Halsin, dead at goblin camp.” Lastly, one player claimed, “You used the word “accidentally”. I do not think it means what you think it means.” Therefore, it is safe to say that players found the actions of the player who made the post quite interesting. Even though they claimed it was accidental, others are convinced this amount of murder cannot happen by chance. However, other players seem to be encouraging the original player or sharing their stories about their own murderous runs at Baldur’s Gate 3.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge player discovers how annoying companions can be Larian StudiosA Dark Urge player in Baldur’s Gate 3 has found that one party member in particular becomes quite annoying when you start giving in to murderous temptation. Playing as the Durge is not for the faint of heart. You’ll be tempted and sometimes forced to commit awful crimes, and you won’t always be able to play the game in the way you want. There’s also the added danger that your favorite characters might die at your hand. If all this stress wasn’t enough, playing as the Durge unlocks new dialogue options with your party, and for one player, these new conversations had them seeing one fan-favorite party member in quite a different light. Surprisingly, the character was Shadowheart, and what made her so annoying was the “hypocrisy” she shows during the Durge playthrough. She’ll reprimand the player for killing people while at the same time pursuing her desire to kill the Nightsong, which angered one player who just didn’t want to be judged for their murders. Durge player brands Shadowheart as “hypocritical” In a post on the Baldur’s Gate subreddit, one player said that Shadowheart was really getting on their nerves during a Dark Urge playthrough. They said: “I’ve gotten around to doing an evil Durge play-through and Shadowheart is beyond hypocritical. She sits and judges me for killing in the name of Bhaal but she’s killed a literal angel to be just a Dark Justiciar. I’m an actual piece of Bhaal. “You’re just an elite force of Shar, don’t come at me like that. She said I was crazy for being Bhaal’s chosen, like girl, blindly following the Goddess of Loss isn’t that great either. I’m about to replace her spot with a hireling.” If Shadowheart does actually become a Dark Justiciar, she turns into a much meaner person than her normal self, so maybe she and the Dark Urge are made for each other. For more news and updates on Baldur’s Gate 3, check out why players are complaining about the latest updates’ changes to the game’s ending.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge Easter egg in Tav playthrough has players obsessed Larian StudiosA Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge Easter egg has players developing their own head cannon during their Tav playthroughs. Despite releasing in August of 2023, Baldur’s Gate 3 fans are still finding new Easter eggs, in large part due to the massive scope of the game. Like most RPGs, it’s common for players to miss certain parts of the game during their initial playthrough. As such, the BG3 community has taken to sharing these various Easter eggs across the likes of Reddit and social media. The latest Easter egg to be shared amongst the Baldur’s Gate 3 community being the discovery of the Dark Urge’s body during Act 3 of the game. One BG3 player shared their findings in a new Reddit thread while playing through the game as Tav. “So after defeating Orin and entering her chambers, I found some dead bodies I imagine she did her usual stabby thing with, one of them being a white dragonborn who looks an awful lot like the default Dark Urge. If it is the Durge, is this what happens to them if you don’t select them at the start?” While in development, Baldur’s Gate 3 was given the codename Gustav. As such, the devs decided to pay homage to this by choosing Tav as the default name for the generic male custom character. On release, fans quickly discovered that the name section of the customization screen was largely hidden, resulting in many players missing the section and as such, playing through the game with their character being called Tav. Therefore, Tav has become a sort of meme and inside joke within the BG3 community, with many now referring to their playthrough using the default male character as a Tav run. As such, players have been coming up with their own head cannon explanation as to why Durge’s corpse appears during Act 3 of the game when playing as Tav. “Gameplay decisions aside, from a lore perspective it would be fair to assume it’s because the Durge failed to beat Orin and for his failure Bhal consumed/destroyed his soul, preventing that form of communication,” wrote one BG3 player. Another added, “All signs point to that being the Durge. The corpse is only there if you don’t play Durge.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 dev hints highly requested customization feature in the works Larian StudiosA Baldur’s Gate 3 developer told fans a customization feature allowing players to change their character’s appearance is in the works. Baldur’s Gate 3 boasts an in-depth character creation system in which players can spend an inordinate amount of time tinkering. This level of expansiveness applies to the character’s skills and abilities, too. Unfortunately, once a user leaves the character creator, their hero’s appearance is more or less locked in. Even changing hairstyles is out of the question. This surprisingly overlooked feature has led to fans begging developer Larian for the option to redo character customization choices. Many will be pleased to learn the studio’s been listening. New Baldur’s Gate 3 customization feature in development In response to a tweet from Larian’s Director of Publishing, Michael Douse (aka @Cromwelp), one player pleaded: “Sir please let me change how I look in the game. I’m BEGGING!!!!” Douse simply replied, “Things are being cooked.” The statement seemingly confirms that the much-coveted ability to alter your character’s appearance is in the works. When the feature might become available and how it will function in-game remains to be seen. But at least, Baldur’s Gate 3 players now know the customization feature no longer constitutes a pipe dream. Based on responses to the above post, fans are ecstatic about the news. Of course, a host of “thank you” posts and the like fill the replies. Meanwhile, others ask that the developers take their time to get the feature right. This news follows on the heels of Larian rolling out Hotfix #3 for Baldur’s Gate 3 late last week. The patch tackled over 200 bugs and issues and made the Blue Behir Dice permanently available to everyone.

Baldur’s Gate 3: Crafting explained Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 being an RPG, gear is arguably the most important aspect of the game. Here is a guide on how crafting works so that you can gear up as fast as possible. Crafting is definitely an essential part of Baldur’s Gate 3. However, it is not as inclusive as something like the ones you find in Skyrim or The Witcher 3. In Baldur’s Gate 3, crafting is much more limited especially when it comes to armor and weapons. Despite that, it does play a part and you should enable it to make your journey through the game much more streamlined. A guide to how crafting works in the RPG has been discussed in the following sections. Potion crafting in Baldur’s Gate 3 Potions are some of the most important pieces of equipment in the game. You need potions to heal, buff yourself, or increase resistance to status effects. Potion crafting in this game is included as part of Alchemy. This is something that you can access from your main menu and as long as you have the ingredients and the recipe you can create any sort of potion. Recipes become available as you explore the massive world of Baldur’s Gate 3. Potion crafting offers a lot of freedom as you can pretty much create anything and everything that you need at a particular instance. Weapon and Armor crafting in Baldur’s Gate 3 Weapon and Armor crafting is not as expansive as Potions in Baldur’s Gate 3. In order to craft weapons and armor you need to complete The Adamantine Forge quest. Alongside that, you can craft Sussur weapons by completing the Finish the Masterwork Weapon quest. Unfortunately, creating weapons and armor is exceptionally restrictive in this game. There are very few things you can craft and those are tied to the quests mentioned earlier. If you want something really powerful, it is easier if you get it from a trader. This concludes our guide for crafting in Baldur’s Gate 3. If you found it informative please look into some of our other guides for the game at Dexerto. Best Sorcerer build | Best Bard build | Best Rogue build | Best Fighter build | Best Ranger build | Best Barbarian build | Best Druid build | Best Warlock build | Best Wizard build | Baldur’s Gate 3: What’s the max level cap? | Best Baldur’s Gate 3 classes tier list | How to revive characters in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Can you multiclass in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Baldur’s Gate 3 Soul Coins: How to get them & what they are | Baldur’s Gate 3: Fastest ways to get XP & level up | Baldur’s Gate 3: How to respec your character | Baldur’s Gate 3 Karmic Dice: What are they?

Baldur’s Gate 3 players debate “coolest” class/subclass combination Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 players have opened up a discussion about what they think constitutes the coolest class and subclass combinations. Baldur’s Gate 3’s class system provides players with the tools to create hybrid builds that can engender creative results. The title launched with 12 classes in total, each one featuring its own set of subclasses that opens the door to a wide array of variations. For example, some may consider Battle Master the most formidable of the Fighter’s three subclass options. And the Draconic Bloodline seems a favorite amongst those who went the Sorcerer route. It’s been weeks since the game’s full release on PC, so what are Baldur’s Gate 3 players thinking by and large? A popular Reddit thread may offer some insight. Baldur’s Gate 3 fans debate “coolest” class/subclass combos Having gone down a rabbit hole of best class/subclass guides, BG3 player and Reddit user HuziUzi wanted to know what fellow fans consider the “coolest” combinations. The Redditor says their personal favorite is the Eagleheart Barbarian. “Forget magic, forget technique, there’s nothing more primal than an angry Barbarian diving at you with an axe from the third floor,” the original poster wrote. Dozens of other users chimed in with their own favorite builds in response to the question. One person chose the Way of the Four Elements Monk as their combo of choice, mostly because “you get to punch people while your hands are on fire.” Another player chose The Great Old One subclass for Warlock as their “coolest” Baldur’s Gate 3 build. “I think outer gods in general are hella cool, plus eldritch blast is like my favorite animation in this game,” they reasoned. A comment about the Oath of the Ancients Paladin received a lot of love in the thread, too. The commenter noted, “Ancients paladin gets all the cool paladin sh** and also gets to be a Charisma-based character who can talk to animals.” If nothing else, it’s clear players are having a blast mixing and matching the class and subclass options.

Baldur’s Gate 3 continues Steam Deck dominance for fifth month in a row Valve has revealed the most-played Steam Deck games in December 2023, and it revealed that yet again, no one can stop playing Baldur’s Gate 3 on the go. When Baldur’s Gate 3 first rolled out on Steam, not many were expecting the latest game by Larian Studios to run well on the Steam Deck. The world of Faerûn is littered with highly detailed fantastical fantasy creatures, including one delightful vampire, making the DnD-based RPG one of the most graphically intensive games to come out in 2023. Despite the odds, Baldur’s Gate 3 not only earned its verified status on the Valve handheld, but continues to dominate Valve’s top 20 most-played Steam Deck games list, beating out big hitters like Cyberpunk 2077, and Grand Theft Auto V. The latest version of the list, posted by the official OnDeck account on X/Twitter, revealed that for December 2023, Baldur’s Gate 3 is still the most played Steam Deck game, calculated by hours played. Happy (belated) New Year! Here’s a look at the top Steam Deck games of December, sorted by playtime. pic.twitter.com/DguQAhHW1U — Steam Deck (@OnDeck) January 2, 2024 You can’t keep a good vampire down This isn’t Baldur’s Gate 3’s first time being the most-played Steam Deck game, as for the last five months, the RPG has taken the top spot. Before its release on Steam in August of last year, Dave the Diver won out over the competition as the most-played Steam Deck for July 2023, with Street Fighter 6 beating out the rest for June. Yet, since the devilishly handsome Astarion debuted on our Steam Deck screens, and now the hardware has a new and shiny updated OLED display, nothing has been able to take its place. While Baldur’s Gate 3’s reluctance to give up its place as the most-played Steam Deck game is a worthy feat in itself, a few brand new games have made their top 20 most-played Steam Deck games debut. Coral Island, the cozy farming sim, has made its first appearance, alongside the latest horror co-op Steam success, Lethal Company. Disney Dreamlight Valley, the Animal Crossing-inspired life-sim featuring your favorite Disney characters, that we’re currently utterly obsessed with, has also found its way onto the list. Whether it’s a cosy life sim, horrifying co-op, or sci-fi fantasy epic, Baldur’s Gate 3 continues to reign supreme on the Steam Deck. Yet with highly anticipated releases just around the corner, from Tekken 8, to Persona 3 Reload, 2024 might just be the year the DnD RPG gets knocked from its Steam Deck throne.

Baldur’s Gate 3 companions weren’t supposed to be so horny Larian StudiosIt turns out that Baldur’s Gate 3 companions weren’t supposed to be so horny after all, as Larian Studios CEO has revealed it was initially just a bug, not an intentional feature. Larian Studios’ CEO and Baldur’s Gate 3 director, Swen Vincke, has clarified that the game’s unusually eager-to-please characters were not a design choice but rather a programming bug. When Baldur’s Gate 3 was released, players quickly noticed that the characters seemed unusually eager to jump into bed with them. So eager, in fact, that a new speedrunning category emerged, tasking players with seducing the Githyanki companion Lae’zel in record time. The latest record? A staggering 2 minutes and 4 seconds. But as it turns out, these romantically aggressive companions weren’t an intended feature of the game. Vincke recently clarified that the characters’ low “approval thresholds” were actually a programming error. “It wasn’t supposed to be that way. We’ve fixed it since, at least for some of them. We’re still fixing a few of them,” Vincke said. Larian Studios had intended for the game to simulate real relationships, where companions don’t instantly fall for the player. “It was supposed to simulate how real relationships are,” Vincke explained. “There were a lot of people that enjoyed it. But it was too fast.” However, the bug led to characters acting in ways that would be considered “problematic” in real life, according to Vincke. While some players found the accelerated romances amusing, others criticized them as unrealistic and potentially troubling. Among the characters, Gale, the eloquent wizard, was notably impacted by this bug. Originally designed to be a complex character with nuanced relationships, Gale would instantly romance players due to the programming error. Players can now expect a more realistic courtship process with him and other companions in the game. It remains to be seen if Baldur’s Gate 3 will uphold its title as one of the horniest RPGs of all time now following these changes.

Baldur’s Gate 3 companions have some hilariously unexpected disapprovals Larian StudiosTurns out your Baldur’s Gate 3 companions can be pretty judgy. Thankfully, it leads to some entertaining outcomes. Each of your Baldur’s Gate 3 companions has their motivations, background, and moral alignment. As such, they’re going to have some varied reactions to the kinds of shenanigans you get involved in during your journey. Most of the time, companion reactions are pretty predictable. Key decisions during main quests will see you effectively taking sides with one party member over another. You can even make decisions that make certain characters unrecruitable. Baldur’s Gate 3 players amused by strange companion disapprovals That said, companion morality isn’t always so black and white. As players on r/BaldursGate3 discussed, there are plenty of amusing examples of companions disapproving of your choices in ways that seem absurd or surprising. “Selunite Shadowheart—a good church girl that saves innocents and prays every day—disapproved of me refusing to bomb a labor camp of gnomes… I was so confused”, one player started. Of course, Shadowheart wasn’t always down with Selune. Starting the game as a devout follower of Shar, she also gets pretty miffed if you pop an idol of Selune into her inventory in Act 1. Her reaction is a favorite for commenters: “I will be honest, my approval with her was consistently good enough that I loved sassing her about Selune, I’ve put that statue in her inventory every time I’ve played.” Another example was of Astarion messing around and finding out by cosigning a player “taking the Blood of Lathlander before deactivating the [Solar Lance]. Astarion approves when you take it, but sure as hells will definitely disapprove when you leave him to be crushed.” In some cases, your companion’s objection to your decisions is well-founded in their lore. Yet the fact that Larian included the situation in the first place still amuses fans. Should a player try and flirt with Wyll’s patron, Mizora, he’s less than enthused about it: “Telling Mizora she’s hot. Wyll disapproves. Come on bro, she is and you know it.” Naturally, he’s especially unhappy when you take it one step further and romance her.

Baldur’s Gate 3 companion foreshadows game’s biggest twist in casual conversation Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 has a huge reveal for fans of the original games and D&D lore, which is subtly foreshadowed by one of your party members. Those who choose the non-Dark Urge custom character in Baldur’s Gate 3 won’t get much in terms of unique dialogue options. If you’re lucky, you’ll get the occasional “Baldurian” option, signifying you as a former citizen of the city of Baldur’s Gate and giving you knowledge of its customs and locations. The Baldurians will eventually learn a huge secret about the Dream Visitor that has been aiding them throughout the game. Not only is this person secretly a Mind Flayer, but they were once Balduran, the person who founded the city of Baldur’s Gate, and to whom it’s named after. This revelation is hinted at several times throughout the game, but one of the most notable happens when talking with Wyll. As pointed out in a thread on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit, Wyll drops a huge reference to Balduran’s fate and The Emperor’s true identity in a flippant comment. “There’s so much stuff I didn’t pick up on my first time through the game. It’s almost like a second game,” one user wrote, while another said, “Mirkon, the little boy Tiefling that you can save from the halflings, calls you a hero — “like Baldy Ron.” “If you listen to the lyrics of Song of Balduran, there are massive spoilers there too, especially if you haven’t done the Ansur mission,” one fan pointed out, while another wrote, “Yeah. And you listen to it constantly in the Elfsong. The Emperor’s Theme is pretty much another spoiler, too (love that version though.)” The Balduran reveal is strange in that it doesn’t have a direct role in the story of Baldur’s Gate 3. The Emperor could be any random person who managed to reclaim their personality as a Mind Flayer and decided to get revenge. The implications of such an important lore character being alive this whole time and manipulating events from the shadows is a big deal, especially to fans of the older entries in the series. The idea that the memories of their previous host can alter a Mind Flayer’s personality is also huge, especially in a game where the player is deathly afraid of transforming into one. Wyll might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, what with the whole selling his soul thing, but he was at least right about Balduran, whether he realized it or not.

Baldur’s Gate 3 community split as some beg for romance with “hot spider man” Baldur’s Gate 3Baldur’s Gate 3 is a very romantically-charged game, one that allows players to woo a number of different characters. However, some players were left wanting after being unable to bed the game’s “hot spider man” and are begging for an option to get more intimate with him. Larian really went all-out when it comes to romance options in Baldur’s Gate 3. Between fully mo-capping intimate scenes and giving each party member their own extensive romance route, there’s a lot to love for passionate adventurers. However, that passion has been taken to new grounds by some fans of the game that were let down by not being able to romance Kar’niss, a half-spider half-human NPC that crosses paths with the player in a quest line that’s fairly easy to miss from the game’s later stages. This has some fans begging for a romance route with him to be added with the “hot spider man,” while others have proclaimed that they’d “set this man ablaze” if he got anywhere near them. Some Baldur’s Gate 3 players want “spider man” romance scenes Baldur’s Gate 3 is no stranger to some less-than-standard romance options. From devils, battle-hardened warriors and mages to druids that do some… less-than-savory things with their animal transformations, most people weren’t left wanting when it comes to the routes they can choose. Most people. Self-proclaimed “monster f***ers” have come out of the woodwork just begging for Kar’niss to be a romance option, voicing their love for the arachnoid being. Meanwhile, others have pushed back on these demands and were left confused by those who found Kar’niss appealing. One tweet about him sparked a clash amongst fans in the quote retweets, leaving the community divided on the issue. Community members were saying things like “cured my arachnophobia” and “LET ME F*** THE SPIDER MAN PLEASE LARIAN” in response to seeing him. “I’m so glad that there seems to be a sizeable amount of us monster f***ers showing up in support,” proclaimed another user. However, the response wasn’t all positive. For some who haven’t gotten to the later stages of the game, they were terrified at the proposition of even meeting this man. “Please f***ing tell me this [is] an avoidable part of the game?? Oh dear god that is TERRIFYING. totally respect this person thinking he’s pretty cause I can see it BUT I AM ARACHNOPHOBIC,” said another user. Meanwhile, some were a bit less cordial and threatened to torch him or claimed they had “killed him with hammers” due to his, in their eyes, unsettling design. Either way, it seems that Kar’niss’ inclusion has made waves in the Baldur’s Gate 3 community and awakened desires some players didn’t even know they had. With Larian teasing that there could be DLC coming for the title, who knows where they’ll let players go next? As one user put it, “my d*** has led me places I wouldn’t go with a gun.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 community shocked by player unlocking trophy “the hard way” Larian StudiosAfter one Baldur’s Gate 3 player shared how they unlocked the Jack-of-All-Trades achievement, others are discussing better ways to accomplish this feat. Baldur’s Gate 3 is a massive RPG with plenty of achievements or trophies to unlock. One of these is Jack-of-All-Trades, which requires you to multiclass a character into each of the game’s 12 classes without respecing them with Withers. The game’s level cap is also 12, which means you have to take one level in each class. In response to one Reddit user who unlocked the achievement “the hard way,” others are sharing how they pulled off the same feat in a less frustrating manner. Baldur’s Gate 3 players share easier ways to unlock Jack-of-All-Trades achievement. Reddit user TholosTB shared their experience in a post titled “Jack-of-all-Trades, the hard way. 1/10 would not repeat” alongside a screenshot of their build. The halfing character, presumably a Tav, has a level in each class, starting with Fighter and ending with Paladin. Multiclassing in Baldur’s Gate 3 can create some incredibly powerful builds, but it does come with a trade-off. Each level you take in each class counts towards your total level, and since you can only have 12 total, you’ll be missing out on the highest-level abilities from any of the classes. That’s why the achievement’s name references the phrase “Jack of all trades, master of none.” This makes it hard to complete Baldur’s Gate 3 with a Jack-of-All-Trades character, as they are essentially stuck with just level 1 abilities. However, as many commenters have pointed out, there are much easier ways to get the trophy. “I just waited to recruit Minsc at level 12 and just gave him everything. Easy mode achievement off a character I was going to bench anyway,” shared one player. Others mentioned using hirelings to accomplish the same. Since recruited characters are unlocked at level 1 and can be quickly leveled up to catch up with the rest of the party, this is a quick way to get a character from level 1 to 12 without interacting with Withers or having to work with a poorly built character. Of course, it can be fun to play with a non-optimal build. As an example, one commenter shared that they unlocked the trophy by creating Barbie to justify the multiclassing “because Barbie can be anything!” Still, it’s clear those who want to unlock all of Baldur’s Gate 3’s achievements or trophies don’t have to go through quite as much effort as it initially seems.

Baldur’s Gate 3 community shares tips to get through “hardest part” of Act 2 Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 players have shared some viable ways to get through this particular “hardest part” of Act 2. There’s a point in Baldur’s Gate 3 where players are tasked to assault the Moonrise Towers. The thing is, according to one player in a Reddit thread, the real challenge here isn’t exactly making your way to defeat the enemies. Rather, it’s dealing with Jaheira, a character you’ll come across, offering you her help. Despite her good intentions to help you out, the player claimed that she does not make good decisions, leaving the player having to keep her from killing herself. While that may sound devastating, other players quickly flooded the comments, sharing how this kind of situation can be dealt with. One user suggested that the OP make her join their party and then enter through the side entrance instead of the front door, claiming that it’s a “perfect bottleneck.” Alternatively, the OP can opt to kill everyone in Moonrise before doing the Shar dungeon starting from the top floor. “It spares you the long, tedious battle. Start with the half-orc lady first,” they wrote. Another user admitted that they resorted to using the dimension door to “teleport her all the way out of Moonrise” and “over the bridge by the waypoint.” Because of that, their character managed to get out of combat and ran back to the fight quickly while she “didn’t know wtf to do” and “stayed outside long enough” for the player to “finish the fight inside.” Meanwhile, another user suggested: “Recruit. Her. Put her outside and skip her turns if you have to. Experienced players will use Call Lightning so she can get 10 blasts at the most and still keep in the back.” Whether or not players would like to keep Jaheira alive is their choice. However, it’s worth knowing that she can be an important character in Act 3, as you need her to unlock a certain party member.

Baldur’s Gate 3 community shares outpouring of love for narrator voice actress Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 players have been heaping appreciation onto the VA of the game’s narrator for voicing their adventures. Baldur’s Gate 3 tells an enormous story that takes most players well over 70 hours to complete. If you’re being thorough, you can easily push that play time into the triple figures too. There’s not been a game that feels as big as Baldur’s Gate 3 in quite some time. To go along with that journey, you’re accompanied by a band of companions, fully voiced with terrific performances from all of the voice actors. They really help the game come to life in awesome and important ways. However, one overlooked performance isn’t even a companion at all – it’s the game’s narrator. She helps give you further context to what characters are feeling and experiencing when visuals aren’t enough. The voice helps define your experience, and voice actress Amelia Tyler puts in an excellent performance throughout the game’s runtime. Players are appreciative of that too. In a Reddit thread with over 10.6k upvotes, fans are relaying their love for Tyler’s performance. One redditor said, “She’s utterly fantastic”, while another commented, “Her voice is like warm butter.” One commenter appreciated the nuances that make her more than just a narrator too. They said: “Especially when she’s being sarcastic – like when you steal something and get noticed or try to attack someone without getting caught.” You have to listen to Amelia Tyler’s voice over outtakes If you’re looking for a really fun time, you should check out Tyler’s own YouTube channel where she’s been posting outtakes of her recording sessions for Baldur’s Gate 3. There are currently three and they are all hilarious. It’s really worth a couple of minutes of your day to enjoy, especially if you’ve been head-first into the world of Baldur’s Gate 3. Tyler clearly had a lot of fun recording these, and getting a peek behind the process of bringing the narrator to life is certainly interesting for any fan. If Baldur’s Gate 3 gets any sort of future content update, players will certainly be hoping to see Tyler back.

Baldur’s Gate 3 community sets wager for first player to trigger rare cutscene Larian StudiosThere’s some dialogue in Baldur’s Gate 3 where Karlach becomes self-aware she’s in a video game, and now, there’s a big bounty for those able to trigger this scene without mods. A clip of Karlach breaking the fourth wall in Baldur’s Gate 3 first surfaced in September 2023. Though almost a year on, YouTuber Proxy Gate Tactician has now put up a $500 bounty for anyone able to replicate this scene “organically” in the game. This extremely rare cutscene was first posted by Chubblot. It starts with Karlach switching from looking at the player’s character to directly at the camera – as if attempting to speak to the player behind it. “Tell me – Tell me now. Do you know how all of this ends? You, me, this adventure?” she asks. And if that’s not shocking enough, she also asks if you’ve “done this before,” hinting at those who have played multiple playthroughs or finished the game once. The thing is… while it’s been known that this particular scene exists, and Karlach’s VA Samantha Beart even suggested that the Easter egg can be “organically” accessed, so far, no one has shared proof of how they got this scene to trigger in-game despite claims of encountering it—at least without using mods. “Congrats on finding this, perhaps I’ll talk about it when someone triggers this organically (rather than yanking the file and then getting confused about context)…” Beart mentioned. So far, the only confirmed way to trigger this dialogue is by using mods or tinkering with the game’s files. Hence, YouTuber Proxy Gate Tactician is on the hunt to find anyone who can trigger this scene and is even willing to reward them with a wager. According to dataminers, this fourth wall break dialogue is labeled with “Currently Can Not Be Triggered,” so it may not be possible to show up after all. That said, those up for the challenge and looking to snatch the prize will have to post a video including the method of how they triggered it, and it must be “reproducible by others” in the current patch.

Baldur’s Gate 3 community reveals major combat feature for Scratch Larian StudiosOne Baldur’s Gate 3 player has highlighted a major Scratch feature that could change combat for tons of players. Scratch has the heart of practically everyone both in Baldur’s Gate 3 and the huge community of players surrounding the game. After all, he’s the best boy and is undeniably one of the most adorable companions you can get in Baldur’s Gate 3. However, since he’s so lovable, many are hesitant to let him out of camp, with fears of his demise plaguing the minds of many fans. However, those fears can finally be let go thanks to one player who’s issued a key combat PSA for everyone’s favorite boy. Baldur’s Gate 3 fan reveals Scratch is completely safe in combat Sharing their PSA on Reddit, one user explained how “Apparently some people aren’t aware that Scratch isn’t harmed when he’s summoned as a familiar. He’s basically a construct, so don’t worry about hurting him. He wants to help!” Essentially, since Scratch counts as a familiar when you summon him into battle, if he falls he’ll simply return to your camp instead of dying – meaning you can have man’s best friend right by your side in epic battles without worrying about his demise. “My wife and I did an entire play-through where we never summoned scratch ’cause I did not know he would reappear. Just started our second playthrough and trying to see if I can emotionally deal with sending him into combat” commented one player, proving it may still be a little tricky to see the adorable pup getting hurt. One fan took to the comments to give players a useful tip when using Scratch in combat: “Key is to have him hide in the shadows. If one of your party goes down he can help them back up. That’s how I use him! And the occasional one or two HP enemy that needs a good bite’n.” Others joked how you’ll need to be careful when triggering combat in camp, highlighting how “if combat is triggered in camp and scratch dies in camp then it is the real Scratch. And congrats you’ve just begun John Wick.” It’s not exactly clear how Scratch can be considered as a construct instead of just being a good boy, but if it works in his favor and means he can’t be killed in combat, then there are not many complaints to be had. Just be careful when he’s in your camp, any fight there is devastatingly permanent.

Baldur’s Gate 3 community divided as some claim the Emperor gets special treatment Baldur’s Gate 3 players have been divided by recent analysis of the Emperor, mostly thanks to comparisons between him and Cazador, everyone’s least favorite vampire. One of the more enduring questions facing the Baldur’s Gate 3 community is the morality of the Emperor, the mindflayer who catfishes you and provides immunity to the Elder Brain’s control. He’s a strange guy, not only because he pretends to be a cool guardian figure to lower your suspicions, but also because he really wants you to become a squid just like him. It’s a tough sell, but those illithid powers aren’t nothing. Come Act 3 and you’ll have to make a choice between the Emperor and Orpheus, the prince of the comet, who’s also trapped inside the Astral Prism. But while the Emperor’s motives and tactics are often described as nuanced and complex, there’s another Act 3 character who does similar things, but gets treated very differently. Baldur’s Gate 3 players highlight the Emperor’s blatant double standard One player on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit highlighted the fact that Cazador and the Emperor both enslaved people against their will, with Cazador controlling everyone’s beloved, Astarion, and the Emperor manipulating Stelmane, former leader of Baldur’s Gate. The difference in treatment could be down to the fact that no one likes Stelmane as much as Astarion. To be fair, no character is liked as much as Astarion. Still, it gave some players pause for thought. One player said: “I do actually feel sorry for Cazador and find it weird how people treat him as a cartoon villain when he is written pretty well despite having so much cut content. “He’s a terrible person, obviously, but he is also another cog to the curse of vampirism. Just like Vellioth before him, just like Donnela before them both…”

Baldur’s Gate 3 community crowns the game’s “worst” NPC Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 fans have once again rallied together to decide which companion is the worst of the worst. Baldur’s Gate 3 won over the hearts of critics and fans due to its creativity, freedom, sense of adventure and vast range of content. As with any major RPG world, players are able to encounter, befriend, and even kill many different NPCs throughout the game. As a result, the Baldur’s Gate 3 community has been going back and forth online for months, debating which companion is the worst of them all. While there are multiple names that often find themselves thrown into the mix, one companion has recently been thrown into the spotlight in a big way. In a new Reddit thread, one Baldur’s Gate 3 player posted a list of why they believe Aradin is the least helpful companion in the game, noting before writing out their list that, “At this point, I have killed Raphael.” The list includes the following explanation as to why Aradin is so weak in their eyes. “Apparently word has spread of my squad being devil slayers. “And there here comes Aradin literally attacking a camp. Aradin is canonically in remedial classes.” Fellow Baldur’s Gate 3 players were quick to flock to the Reddit thread, chiming in and agreeing with the original poster. “I did my best to bank inspiration to punch his lights out in honor mode. I think I only used one point but it was all that mattered to me before I got to the grove lol. I broke my oath killing him & then again resurrecting Mayrina’s man.” Others all called Aradin “built different” and “unique” with major tones of sarcasm and emojis included.

Baldur’s Gate 3 fans roast player who says turn-based combat makes game “boring” Larian StudiosThe Baldur’s Gate 3 community blasted someone for calling the game’s turn-based combat mechanics “boring.” Akin to Larian Studios’ last title, Divinity: Original Sin II, Baldur’s Gate 3 features turn-based mechanics. Instead of real-time combat like The Witcher games, turn-based battles pause the action, giving each opponent a chance to perform offensive and defensive tactics. Baldur’s Gate 3’s meteoric success suggests many people are fond of this style of gameplay. However, it’s safe to say that some prospective players were turned away by the combat style. While everyone has their own opinions, Baldur’s Gate fans couldn’t abide one person, in particular, who called turn-based games “boring.” Baldur’s Gate 3 players blast unpopular hot take about the combat Twitter users Synth Potato recently came under fire for suggesting that Larian should add a real-time combat option to BG3. They even went so far as to say they’d pay for such a feature in a hopeful DLC release. Synth Potato wrote in part, “A huge amount of players, including myself, who want to get into the game cannot due to [its] turn-based [combat].” Lots of commenters in the thread called the hot take a “bad idea.” Many argued that either players “meet [Baldur’s Gate 3] where it’s at,” or play something else. Others agreed with the original poster, though, saying they also walked away from Baldur’s Gate 3 because of the turn-based combat. What especially landed Synth Potato in hot water is their reason for not liking the title’s mechanics. When asked why they can’t get into turn-based games, the Twitter user responded, “they’re boring.” It didn’t take long for the gloves to come off. “Nah bro you’re just boring,” came one reply. Someone else wrote, “That’s such an absurd take to me. He also doesn’t like reading books because the words aren’t SHOUTED AT HIM.” Another person went after the poster’s affiliation with Red Dead Redemption content. “Red Dead Redemption pfp saying games are boring is crazy.” The Rockstar Nation account replied as well, “Bro, this is the same take RDR2 haters have on its gameplay.” The way discourse in gaming works, this is one Baldur’s Gate 3 discussion that’s likely to crop up several more times.

Baldur’s Gate 3 players can’t get enough of “morally misleading choices” Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 players are highlighting some of the role-playing game’s most notable “morally misleading choices.” Like with any other RPG, choices in Larian’s Baldur’s Gate adventure play an essential part in the overall experience. Choices both big and small factor into the game’s outcome and determine which characters will live or die. On the surface, some decisions seem easier to make than others, but Larian made sure to inject the RPG with enough gray area to keep players on their toes. One person has described these decisions as “morally misleading choices,” and fans are having a field day sharing their favorite examples. Baldur’s Gate 3 fans pick their favorite morally ambiguous choices Redditor MxCrosswords recently asked fellow BG3 faithful to recall the best examples of the game’s “morally misleading choices.” For their own choice, the user pointed to saving Baelen Bonecloak, an NPC trapped in the Underdark that players can rescue. The Redditor said that they save people instinctively but regret extending that grace to Baelen. After all, as the campaign progresses, evidence of Baelen’s abuse towards his wife, Derryth, bubbles to the surface. “Next time, I’m going to let him get bibberbanged. Apparently, Derryth can adopt a cat if he dies, in addition to being much happier,” the original poster concluded. Naturally, numerous people flooded the comments to share their own experiences with BG3’s “morally misleading choices.” One person mentioned “Helping the little girl in the cemetery,” for instance. Elsewhere in the thread, another Baldur’s Gate 3 player stated that every decision related to Mayrina falls into this category. “Basically any of the choices made with Mayrina. That hag really just… ruined her all because of a tragedy.” Someone who agreed with the above sentiment wrote, “‘Saving’ Mayrina is what I came here to say. The game does such a damn good job of making sure every subsequent decision is twisted into an undesired outcome.” Baldur’s Gate 3 obviously has no shortage of narrative options that will make players rethink their choices later.

Baldur’s Gate 3 characters have a perplexing reaction to Act 2 massacre Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 is a story-driven game and you will often come across scenarios that have an impact on both the players as well as the characters. However, there is one scene in Act 2 where the reactions of the characters in the game are quite perplexing. Baldur’s Gate 3 is a deep game where every decision has a huge impact on the happenings of the story. There is an instance in the game where the tieflings you meet in Act 1 will end up dead in Act 2 and you can see their bodies on the road. However, the Tav and rest of the party members have a surprisingly casual reaction to the death of these tieflings. This reaction is something that has perplexed a lot of players with some of them feeling disappointed at this particular section. Baldur’s Gate 3 players slam party’s lack of reaction to Act 2 massacre The discussion surrounding the topic was started by the player who posted, “Every time I replay this game and save the tieflings from the grove, I am struck by how nonchalant Tav is when you discover all the dead tieflings splayed across the Shadow-cursed lands.” They also stated, ” I spent so much time saving them! I partied with them! Granted most of the ones at the party don’t die there, but still.” Other players joined the conversation with many of them expressing similar thoughts, with one such player replying, “I’ve always thought there should be more party reaction to finding them too.” Another user chimed in, “It doesn’t matter too much, but I try to get Karlach’s dialogue to trigger for this spot. I’m not sure if any of the others are more sympathetic.” One user also commented, “Yeah, the first time I played I was like, with, I literally JUST saved those guys lol,” while another user suggested, “I suppose they could do what they did for the dead gnomes. Give you a mini cutscene and choose how you respond to seeing the dead bodies.” Therefore, it is safe to assume many players were disappointed at this reaction. Baldur’s Gate 3 is often considered a flawless game when it comes to its storytelling, narrative, gameplay, and dialogues. However, it seems like this is one rare instance where players feel the entire situation could have been handled better by the developers.

Baldur’s Gate 3 characters can hit level 8 in Act I through obscure quests & murder Larian StudiosThose who scour every corner of Act I in Baldur’s Gate 3 can potentially become so powerful that they’ll breeze through the next chunk of the game. Baldur’s Gate 3 has a level cap of 12, and players will likely hit it long before reaching the final battle. This is because there are so many options for gaining experience points that players will likely take on their journey. Regarding Act I, players will likely be level 4 or 5 when they finally head to Moonrise Towers. It is possible, however, to be even stronger before heading underground, as you can reach level 8 in Act I. To do this, players need to milk experience points at every opportunity, ranging from killing the Elminster projection to talking to NPCs at every juncture, especially after completing quests. You can also kill NPCs after they stop being relevant, just for an extra injection of experience. The more obscure methods include spawning Raphael in your camp and defeating him, talking to the sad bear in the Druid Grove after saving Halsin, killing the Oathbreaker Knight, giving Tuffet a fish, and using the Susser Blooms to deactivate the arcane turrets. Users on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit have broken down the numerous ways you can earn experience points in Act I, many of which other players were unaware of. This is due to Baldur’s Gate 3’s ridiculous amount of easily missable content, even after several playthroughs. That said, it’s not advised that you hit level 8 so quickly. Baldur’s Gate 3 doesn’t have level scaling, which means that you can potentially make the rest of the game a cakewalk if you go on a murderhobo spree Act I. People who want an easier time with Baldur’s Gate 3 can lower the difficulty, ensuring you don’t need to hunt down every stray experience point in the game. The fun of hitting level 8 so quickly is mostly tied to a Dark Urge run, where you can see just how much murder and carnage the game will reward you for.

Baldur’s Gate 3 characters are unrealistically hot despite their stats Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 encourages you to romance your gorgeous party members but try not to pay attention to their stats, as they don’t reflect their physical appearance nor how charming they are in conversation. Baldur’s Gate 3 uses the D&D 5E rules, which means it runs into one of the tabletop game’s issues —how to reflect physical beauty accurately. In the old days, D&D had two stats to address this, with Charisma focusing on personality and Comeliness gauging a character’s attractiveness. These were later rolled into Charisma. It’s no secret that Baldur’s Gate 3 party member stats are poorly optimized. This is also shown in their appearance, as pointed out on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit, as Halsin is incredibly hench yet only has 10 Strength, which is meant to reflect someone of average build. One user pointed out a prime example: “Same deal with Minsc. This legendary warrior, jacked as hell, pries himself out of a Mimic’s jaws and has Strength 10.” This is especially bad, as Minsc had Strength 18/93 in Baldur’s Gate 2, which is almost the highest you can get without magic enhancement. “Astarion, Wyll and Gale all have visible abs and pecs but their starting Strength is 8 lmao,” one user wrote, while another said, “One of my few big complaints about this game – stats are totally removed from the narrative. Mechanics are one thing, story is another.” Notably, Shadowheart, a character half the size of her male party members, has a Strength of 13. It seems Lady Shar has a way better gym than the other churches of the Forgotten Realms. And while she might be the most conventionally attractive female party member, she has 8 Charisma. Astarion also has 10 Charisma, meaning he’s about as handsome/charming as the average person in the Forgotten Realms. Where can I get a Spelljammer ticket to this twink paradise? Ultimately, stats had to be displaced from the narrative in order to stop the creators from having to influence the story to accommodate the D&D nerds. The stats are vital when it comes to dungeon delving and fights, but they need to be ignored if they’re going to get in the way of the fun.

Baldur’s Gate 3 challenges that should unlock trophies or achievements Baldur’s Gate 3 rewards various accomplishments with trophies or achievements, but there are plenty more challenges that should also receive that treatment. The game has over 50 achievements (or trophies, depending on what platform you’re playing on) for players to unlock, requiring players to complete multiple runs to get them all. These range from basic gameplay and story tasks, like completing each Act or taking four long rests in a playthrough, to actions you might not think to try without a reward, like only using alcohol to complete a long rest. Achievements and trophies are great ways to encourage players to look at a game in a new way, rewarding them for completing difficult feats or suggesting tasks that they might not be aware of otherwise. With that in mind, here are some Baldur’s Gate 3 challenges that would make perfect trophies. Rescue all Iron Throne prisoners It is genuinely shocking that there is no achievement for rescuing all of the prisoners from the Iron Throne in Act 3, especially since several trophies require players to rescue certain characters or groups. The topic has even inspired a Reddit thread on missed opportunities for achievements/trophies. Rescuing the Iron Throne’s prisoners – Duke Ravengard, 13 Gondians, and (depending on previous choices) Omeluum – is not easy. The underwater prison is actively sinking, limiting the number of turns players have to free its inmates and escape themselves based on the difficulty level. On top of that, there are some enemies to take care of, with additional challenges depending on how you handle Wyll’s pact with Mizora. Because of this, it would make perfect sense to reward those who manage to get everyone out alive with an achievement. Beat Baldur’s Gate 3 without consuming Tadpoles Mind flayer tadpoles are a massive part of Baldur’s Gate 3’s story, with players having the option to consume them to gain useful illithid powers. However, many players ignore these helpful buffs over story concerns. But while there are consequences for using tadpoles, they aren’t as severe as many fear and, indeed, not so dire that players should forgo them for that reason alone. With that in mind, Larian Studios could encourage “No Tadpole” runs as a Baldur’s Gate 3 challenge by giving players an achievement for ignoring this important piece of the game. Use a Soul Coin to power up Karlach’s engine Soul Coins can be used to power up Karlach’s infernal engine heart, giving her the unique Infernal Fury condition, which empowers her attacks under certain circumstances. However, like illithid tadpoles, Soul Coins are another beneficial resource many Baldur’s Gate 3 players don’t use, either because they don’t realize what they do or simply forget they exist. Given their significance, it would make sense to encourage players to use Soul Coins at least once by rewarding them with a trophy. Defeat Gortash before disabling the Steel Watch Another suggestion from Reddit is that managing to defeat Enver Gortash in Act 3 without first disabling the Steel Watch should unlock a trophy. These powerful, destructive Constructs helped Gortash gain power in the city of Baldur’s Gate, and if not dealt with before taking on the Chosen of Bane, they’ll make the fight much harder. Baldur’s Gate 3 includes other achievements for defeating story bosses and other difficult foes in ways that make the game more challenging. For example, beating the Adamantine Golem without using the Forge Hammer and killing Orin the Red while the cultists are chanting will get you trophies for your effort. Granted, there is already an achievement connected to the Gortash fight in Fancy Footwork, which requires players to defeat him at Wyrm’s Rock without triggering any traps. Still, taking the Banite down while he still has access to his greatest asset would fit right in alongside the game’s other challenges. Give Lae’zel the Githyanki egg Lae’zel is the only one of Baldur’s Gate 3’s Origin characters not to have an achievement tied explicitly to her. While players will need to complete at least one Dark Urge run and interact with the others to unlock everything, the only trophy task associated with Lae’zel – allying with Voss against the Githyanki God-Queen Vlaakith – can actually be completed without her. As such, Lae’zel deserves an achievement of her own, and giving her the Gith egg is the perfect option. While the egg has been part of the game since the beginning, Patch 5 added new outcomes for those who take it from the crèche but don’t give it to Lady Esther. What happens to the baby Githyanki depends on the player’s choices, but it’s possible for Lae’zel to raise the child by having the egg in Lae’zel’s inventory at the end of the game. Given that it’s a newer feature that players might not figure out on their own, giving Lae’zel the Gith egg would be the perfect candidate if Larian even decides to add more trophies to Baldur’s Gate 3. For more on Baldur’s Gate 3, check out our guides on the best mods, how to recruit every companion, and the best multiclass builds in the game.

Baldur’s Gate 3 “Chadowheart” mod gives players’ favorite princess a buff makeover Baldur’s Gate 3, NexusMods, TashaWeedsA mod for Baldur’s Gate 3 has players drooling over a buffed version of the dark goddess, Shadowheart. Baldur’s Gate 3 is a haven for the modding community. Even before leaving early access, Nexus Mods had a solid collection of BG3 mods available. Nowadays, there’s a mod for just about every aspect of BG3 – from handy quality-of-life upgrades like unlimited dyeing to cosmetic tweaks like smoothing out your character’s wrinkles. Larian Studios will release an official mod toolkit in September 2024, when Patch 7 comes out, but that doesn’t stop die-hard fans from bending the game’s rules with homebrew magic and making their mods available on NexusMods. The BG3 community’s latest obsession is one that transforms Shadowheart into a fierce, muscular version of herself, a look that’s more suited for melee battle than for clerical duties. This mod was crafted by tashaweeds, a NexusMods user who’s already worked on other mods for Baldur’s Gate 3, including one that replaces BG3’s clothes with Final Fantasy XIV’s gear. But Shadowheart’s makeover has stolen the spotlight on Reddit, with the community having a blast sharing quotes and puns, leading to the playful nickname “Chadowheart.” One player quipped, “Ah man, someone spilled Karlach on my Shadowheart!” while another requested the modder to “do this for every companion. I wanna see jacked Lae’zel & Minthara!” One player playfully nodded at one of Shadowheart’s quotes in the game: “I like her. She looks like she could throw me over her shoulder and carry me to safety… should the need arise.” In the game, this quote is actually aimed at Karlach, a fierce Barbarian who would face some competition if players decide to install this mod. Even nearly a year after Baldur’s Gate 3 launched, the modding community is still lively and active, constantly birthing new mods that can even make a roguelike out of this turn-based RPG.

Baldur’s Gate 3 CEO hits back at Ubisoft comments about owning games Baldur’s Gate 3Baldur’s Gate 3 CEO Swen Vincke has taken to X/Twitter to respond to comments by Ubisoft about subscription models, saying that getting good games will be harder if services become dominant. Ubisoft has come under fire recently for comments about its subscription service plans. The company’s director of subscriptions, Philippe Tremblay said in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, “Gamers are used to owning their games. That’s the consumer shift that needs to happen”. This has sparked a lot of criticism, with many who play games feeling that ownership of games is crucial to their purchase. This is all in the face of a rise in the popularity of gaming subscription services, which have become more and more prominent. Microsoft’s Game Pass in particular has revolutionized the market, but other services are available like Ubisoft’s own Ubisoft+, EA’s EA Play, or Sony’s PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium tiers. However, Larian boss Vincke has expressed caution at the prominence of subscription models saying it could lead to worse games. Ubisoft’s recent comments have garnered a response from Larian Taking to X/Twitter to air out his thoughts, Vincke explained why he’s cautious of the model. He said: “It’s going to be a lot harder to get good content if subscription becomes the dominant model and a select group gets to decide what goes to market and what not. Direct from developer to players is the way.” He continued in the thread: “Subscription models will always end up being cost/benefit analysis exercises intended to maximize profit… We are already all dependent on a select group of digital distribution platforms and discoverability is brutal. Should those platforms all switch to subscription, it’ll become savage.” “In such a world by definition the preference of the subscription service will determine what games get made. Trust me – you really don’t want that.” He concluded by saying “You won’t find our games on a subscription service. I just want to make sure the other ecosystem [buying and selling games and owning them] doesn’t die because it’s valuable.” True to his word, Vincke recently announced that it’s incredibly unlikely that Baldur’s Gate 3 will ever appear Xbox Game Pass. As the industry moves further into subscription, it’s entirely likely it will have an effect on the games that are made, and eventually, what you have available to play. It also brings big concerns about having access to your favorite titles in the long term. That’s why this remains an important conversation, and it’s one that’s refreshing to see a CEO criticize.

Baldur’s Gate 3 centaur mod reveals expectedly unhinged questions Larian Studios/Wizards of the CoastA famous fantasy race is being added to Baldur’s Gate 3 via a mod that’s in production, yet all anyone can ask about is trouser-related questions. Centaurs are a playable race in D&D, with the latest iteration appearing in Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse. The problem with Centaurs is that they raise annoying questions about the rules, such as “Can they ride mounts?” (technically, yes) and “How many spaces do they take on the battlefield?” These reasons likely put Centaurs on the bottom of the playable race list when Larian Studios developed Baldur’s Gate 3. They would be an utter nightmare to implement due to their unusual size and shape, with many cutscenes and pieces of equipment needing to be altered for them. A user on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit has shared work on an in-development that will add Centaurs as a playable race for the custom character Origins. This resulted in some questionable but predictable questions from the fanbase. “MAKE THE CENTAUR MOUNTABLE SO MINTHARA CAN RIDE ME MORE THAN ONCE,” one fan exclaimed, though it’s not as if the game doesn’t have its share of bizarre romance scenes. “Softlock in stairs,” one user wrote, while another asked about the “eternal dilemma”, which asks about how Centaurs would wear pants. To which the OP replied, “Yes, the correct answer is a Centaur never wears pants; he only covers the top part of his body, gotta let his schlong breeze in the air.” “But do they have the proper ‘equipment’ as well?” one player questioned, “Asking for a friend.” Presumably, they aren’t talking about the standard D&D equipment, like swords, a grappling hook, or potions. Plenty of Baldur’s Gate 3 mods add races to the game, such as D&D’s Tabaxi, but they’re mostly humanoids that match the general shape of the existing options. It’s up to the fans to provide the stranger options for the player base. The day may come when Baldur’s Gate 3 will feature the elephant-like Loxodon, the insectoid Thri-Kreen, or the slimy Plasmoids. What they get up to in the bedroom will also have to escape the players’ imaginations and make it onto the screen.

Baldur’s Gate 3 players can’t cope with losing to “easy” boss after buff Larian StudiosOne Baldur’s Gate 3 player lost their Honour Mode run because a buff made the Cazador fight more difficult than usual. Baldur’s Gate 3 is home to its fair share of difficult boss encounters, many of which especially prove trying in Honour Mode. However, one boss battle in particular always felt like a walk in the park – the fight versus vampire lord Cazador Szarr. Many fans have expressed disappointment about the battle in the past, wanting more out of it because of Cazador’s significance to Astarion’s quest. Fortunately, later patches removed some of the exploits that made the vampire-centric encounter such a breeze. Unfortunately, there’s one player who didn’t get the memo until it was too late. Baldur’s Gate 3 fan shamefully loses Honour Mode run to Cazador Reddit user YasuKenji went into their Honour Mode run believing they’d easily walk all over Cazador, after previously defeating him twice without issue. As the player shared with fellow Redditors, though, “I didn’t realize how much they buffed him.” Their low expectations set them up for failure. According to the Baldur’s Gate 3 player, an assault against the vampire lord resulted in the following, “his vampirism swarm took out my grouped teammates and I lost my honour run.” Reading patch notes showed just how much of a buff Cazador has received. And now, the Redditor can’t help but wonder how they’re to cope with such a loss. YasuKenji isn’t the only one who’s suffered Cazador’s wrath post-patch. Another person chimed in to say he took them by surprise in their Honour Mode run. As such, their latest playthrough has them feeling hesitant about the rematch. The Redditor in question wrote, “He got me in my last HM run. I’m in Act 3 now and hesitant to go for him again. It was my fault though, I just kept making bad decisions.” Meanwhile, other BG3 veterans have offered tips on how to best the buffed version of Cazador. One piece of advice reads, “If you cast the daylight spell it weakens him severely. Also the best strategy I found is to surprise him with shovel or an invis companion and literally dump all your damage on him in that window.” Here’s to hoping players don’t keep underestimating the vicious vampire master.

Baldur’s Gate 3 players obsessed with new class concept Larian StudiosBy summoning a whole litter of cats, one Baldur’s Gate 3 player made up a new type of class, the Nekomancer. Baldur’s Gate 3 features a dozen different playable classes, ranging from Barbarian and Paladin to Cleric and Warlock. A selection of subclasses further allows players to build a character to their liking. Not every class has the ability to summon cats, though. No, that honor is only bestowed upon a select few. And players don’t just keep felines around for cuddles; the creatures can prove essential in times of stealth. As such, one player conceptualized a Baldur’s Gate 3 class where the furry animals reign supreme – they call it the Nekomancer. Cats take center stage in made-up Baldur’s Gate 3 class The Nekomancer class in DnD revolves around cats, yet no such class type is available to BG3 players. That didn’t stop one user from taking matters into their own hands, though. Reddit user Couch__Cowboy shared their Nekomancer character-build concept in a screenshot where their Tav’s surrounded by several cats. “Seven cats at level 3. We’re unstoppable,” the player wrote as a caption for the following post: The original poster explained how they made the build with the following comment: “Tav summoned one, and all three companions are druids that each summoned a cat before wild shaping into cats themselves.” As one would expect, many Baldur’s Gate 3 players like this cat-centric line of thinking. “Godsdammit. Now I need to make another Tav,” wrote a user in the thread. Someone else responded by saying, “Now we need an Artificer to build a cat-apult.” Another fan noted that BG3 should do a better job of informing players of all the possibilities when it comes to cats in the game. They wrote, “I don’t know why the tutorial doesn’t include a part where you learn that characters can turn into cats, summon cats, or summon cat illusions… because that is all pretty critical/adorable information for lots of players.” Clearly, fans wouldn’t mind having more cat content in their Baldur’s Gate 3 playthroughs.

Baldur’s Gate 3: Can you romance multiple companions? Larian StudiosIf you’re curious about romancing multiple companions in Baldur’s Gate 3. Here’s what you need to know about forming a polyamorous relationship in BG3. Romantic relationships are crucial in Baldur’s Gate 3, particularly with characters like Shadowheart, Astarion, and Karlach. Their unique personalities enrich the gameplay, drawing players into meaningful interactions with their companions. While you can certainly romance a character in the game, you may be curious to know if it’s possible to romance more than one companion in Larian Studios’ latest RPG. So, here’s everything you need to know about potentially having a polyamorous relationship in Baldur’s Gate 3. Is it possible to romance multiple companions in Baldur’s Gate 3? Yes, you can romance multiple companions in Baldur’s Gate 3. However, there are a few complications that you will run into while trying to get into multiple romantic relationships. Most characters in the game are not fond of multiple romantic partners. This means they will get angry once you deepen the bond with someone, and the other characters will break apart from you. Characters who support polyamory in Baldur’s Gate 3 Here are the BG3 characters that are willing to engage in a polyamorous relationship: Halsin Halsin is the top contender if you’re looking for a polyamorous relationship in BG3. From the get-go, Halsin seems quite open to having multiple romantic partners, particularly with Astarion. You can approach him about a romantic relationship in Act Two. Minthara Minthara is another character in Baldur’s Gate 3 who is open to having an open relationship, but some conditions must be met. Other characters, like Halsin, Wyll, and Karlach, don’t get along with Minthara and will immediately leave your party if they romance Minthara. Like Halsin, she’s available in Act Two as a romantic partner. Shadowheart and Astarion Shadowheart and Astarion are willing to engage in an open relationship, but not with one another. This means you can choose one of them and one from Minthara or Halsin if you want to romance multiple people in Baldur’s Gate 3. The best combinations for romancing multiple characters in BG3 are: Shadowheart + Halsin – Astarion + Halsin – Additionally, you can romance the Drow Twins: Sorn and Nym Orlith whom you meet during Act 3 of the game. Characters who don’t support polyamory in Baldur’s Gate 3 Certain characters may not be open to a polyamorous relationship owing to their own reasons and character constraints. Here’s who they are: Gale Gale is strictly against polyamorous relationships and will express his commitment to monogamy as you initiate romance with Gale. Wyll Similar to Gale, Wyll has no interest in polyamorous relationships and prefers a monogamous relationship. Karlach Initially, Karlach is open to a polyamorous relationship, especially with Shadowheart. However, as her character progresses past Act One, her ideals change as she starts favoring a monogamous relationship. Lae’Zel As a Githyanki warrior, Lae’Zel lives on the edge as she likes bloodshed, violence and decisions that require intimidation. However, she prefers to be strictly exclusive when it comes to relationships. That being said, romancing Lae’Zel might prove to be detrimental to Kalrach. Baldur’s Gate 3 has a vast roster of characters to romance, check out our guide on who voiced the characters and where you’ve heard them before. You can also check out the best build guide for Sorcerer, Bard, Rogue and Fighter.

Baldur’s Gate 3 bug turns Gale into a bouncing Super Mario Niantic/NintendoA Baldur’s Gate 3 player has discovered a bug that causes Gale to hop on the spot endlessly, like a Super Mario Bros. character. While Baldur’s Gate 3 spent several years in Early Access, it still launched with many bugs. Many of these have been fixed via regular patches and hotfixes, but the game is by no means glitch-free yet, and you’re likely to encounter issues, even if they’re just minor graphical hiccups. Indeed, the fanbase on Xbox Series X|S is dealing with a major save bug that is wiping progress. This is the biggest issue with Baldur’s Gate 3 at the moment, and it’s restricted to a single platform, but it’s a particularly annoying one for Xbox owners. While the glitches in the game can be frustrating, they’re also a sign of just how vast its world is and how much detail developer Larian Studios packed into it. This is the best way to explain the bug that turned Gale into Mario. A Baldur’s Gate 3 glitch turned Gale into a Mario-style platform game character A user on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit shared a hilarious glitch during a playthrough, which caused Gale to bounce up and down on the spot as if he were made of rubber. This prompted a lot of responses from bemused fans, who enjoyed Gale’s loss of decorum. “Don’t feed him artifacts after midnight,” one user wrote, while another said, “That’s more jumping than he does in my game. Every time someone gets stuck at the bottom of a cliff, it’s Gale.” As Baldur’s Gate 3 has verticality to its world, with the player able to jump across ledges and fly through the air, this glitch was likely caused by Gale landing incorrectly. The game is well known for its pathfinding issues, especially when jumping, so this one isn’t too surprising. The area he’s standing on is a small cliff used in the first goblin battle in Act I, which the player can use to gain the high ground. The glitch was likely caused by the player ascending/descending the different cliff layers, causing the game to bug out and make Gale bounce like Super Mario. The glitches in Baldur’s Gate 3 can be hilarious, such as the stoic dinosaur defeating Orin the Red. The game is so good that fans can get together and laugh at the ridiculous technical issues, as they’re easy to overlook in the face of such an epic story. And if you’re not enjoying Baldur’s Gate 3, then you’re only a single glitch away from turning it into Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

Baldur’s Gate 3 bug turns character portraits into webcam videos Larian Studios/DexertoBaldur’s Gate 3 might be celebrating its first anniversary, but there are still persistent glitches that players can encounter, including one that messes up the character portraits, making them look like poorly-aligned Zoom calls. Character portraits in Baldur’s Gate 3 are a holdover from the old games, as they not only offer an easy way to select characters but also give you a visual indicator of their current hit points. They also change to match the party member’s appearance, giving you a chance to see close-ups of their headgear. Unfortunately, even the character portraits aren’t safe from the glitches that have haunted Baldur’s Gate 3 since launch. Users on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit are reporting an issue where the party member close-ups look like they’re viewing the game through a webcam. “It’s the dreaded boomer camera tilt, face-to-ceiling ratio all messed up,” one user joked, while another said, “Has been happening to me since EA, I thought they would fix it for release. Not a biggie.” According to one user, the cause of the issue has been identified, and a possible solution is available: “Unfortunately, a known bug often occurs on level up. You can try respeccing at Withers to force a level up (or level up normally), and if that fails, try reloading a save from before the bug occurred.” There’s an even bigger drawback to this glitch when playing as certain races. “I have no idea, but it happens pretty often for me and my friends,” one user wrote, “It’s funny when it happens to a short race like dwarf or halfling because they just completely disappear from the box so it’s just blank.” It’s strange that this issue has existed since Baldur’s Gate 3 entered early access and has yet to be fixed, even though it’s been mentioned publicly for a long time. Then again, the glitch doesn’t affect gameplay and can actually be quite funny when it occurs, so it’s probably a low-priority fix, especially when so much is still planned for the game.

Baldur’s Gate 3 bug swaps a tiny Astarion for a hamster Larian StudiosA Baldur’s Gate 3 player is experiencing a mod-fueled series of bugs that keep swapping character models in the game. The best one yet is one that gave them a tiny Astarion in place of Boo the hamster. Baldur’s Gate 3 is host to a bunch of memorable characters but none more so than the game’s suite of Companions. Among them, Astarion is certainly the favorite, at least as far as fan fiction numbers go. Even the vampiric High Elf’s award-winning voice actor had no idea that the character would become so beloved. The only character in Baldur’s Gate 3 more lovable than Astarion might be Minsc’s adorable little hamster Boo. Thanks to a peculiar bug that may have been caused by some mod usage, we have the best of both. Reddit user u/TylerBourbon posted a screenshot of their current run in which Misc was holding a tiny Asterion whose character model was somehow swapped with his famous pet. “My current play-through has been littered with character models being swapped out during “cut scenes” and this by far is the most bizarre,” the player explained. “Boo has been replaced by a tiny Astarion who has some sort of massive poofy dress version of his armor.” They have admitted to using a suite of mods but to this point, those mods hadn’t impacted any previous playthroughs. Oddly enough, other players don’t think they should endeavor to fix the issue because the result is just too funny. “I would’ve suggested you reinstall, but I think you’ve just stumbled upon pure perfection,” one player noted. “I can’t imagine what happened, and while I hope it fixes itself, part of me is wishing it doesn’t,” another replied. The birth of what we’re calling Hamstarion is a joyous occasion for most onlookers but u/TylerBourbon has apparently identified the source of the issue and is going to rectify it by uninstalling the mod responsible. The phenomenon caused a lot of questions among players who saw this particular model swap in Baldur’s Gate 3 but one is the most pertinent of all. “My only question is where is the Astarion-sized Boo?”

Baldur’s Gate 3 bug creates horrifying hybrid companion Larian StudiosA Baldur’s Gate 3 glitch has introduced some players to a horrifying combination of companions fans are calling “Shale.” Baldur’s Gate 3 lets players meet a variety of potential companions as they journey across the Sword Coast, like the vampire Astartion and druid Halsin. However, a recently found bug has created a new party member, one you’re probably not ready for. As Reddit user pick_nerri shared, it’s possible for Gale and Shadowheart to somehow fuse, and the result is about as unsettling as you’d expect. Baldur’s Gate 3 glitch makes Gale and Shadowheart way too close In a post to the BaldursGate3 subreddit, pick_nerri shared a screenshot of the monstrosity they dubbed “Shale,” a portmanteau of the characters’ names. It’s not clear how the bug, which causes Shadowheart’s head to appear on Gale’s shoulder, is triggered. However, it’s not an isolated incident, as at least two commenters say they’ve encountered the same or similar fusions. Of course, the bug has some Baldur’s Gate 3 players contemplating how “Shale” would actually work in game. “Now with twice the religious trauma!” said one commenter, referencing how both Shadowheart and Gale have pretty complex relationships with deities from their respective backstories. “Shale has a 100% chance to miss sacred flame (nothing’s changed),” commented the original poster. The name also reminded some of the Dragon Age: Origins DLC companion, Shale, leading one to ask “Does this shale also hate pigeons?” It’s not clear how this bug impacts gameplay or if there’s a solution other than reloading the game and hoping for the best. This may be yet another issue introduced by Patch 6, one that will hopefully be addressed in the next Hotfix.

Baldur’s Gate 3 buffed a Shadowheart weapon so she could actually use it Larian StudiosThe developers of Baldur’s Gate 3 changed how a weapon intended for Shadowheart worked, as it turns out she couldn’t use it, thanks to a quirk in the Dungeons & Dragons 5e rules. In Baldur’s Gate 3 and D&D 5e, each character class has different Weapon Proficiencies. If you have proficiency with a weapon, then you get to add your Proficiency Bonus when using it. Naturally, warrior classes have a better weapon selection than spellcasters or sneaky classes. One weapon that didn’t make sense in Baldur’s Gate 3 is the Justiciar’s Scimitar. This is found deep in the Gauntlet of Shar and is clearly a weapon of the Goddess of Darkness’ faith, as it has a chance of blinding foes. Despite this, Shadowheart wasn’t proficient with it, as it’s a Martial Weapon, not a Simple one. As discussed in a thread on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit, the developers changed the Justiciar’s Scimitar to have no Weapon Proficiency limitations, allowing Shadowheart to use it effectively, as it was clearly intended for her. As explained by one user, “Wiki note – “As of Patch 4, the weapon does not have a proficiency classification, is not classified as a Scimitar, and does not require proficiency.” Another user clarified, “I think they removed the tag because they expect people to equip it on Shadowheart. Which as a half-elf Cleric, without feats or multiclassing, cannot use a scimitar.” These changes to the Justiciar’s Scimitar mean that every character can use it with proficiency, not just Shadowheart. It’s a really good weapon to give to a Rogue, such as Astarion, meaning that anyone can make the most of one of Shar’s holiest weapons.

Baldur’s Gate 3 brings most “adorable” new camp interaction in Patch 7 Larian StudiosOne of the new additions from Baldur’s Gate 3’s Patch 7 included a particular camp animation, which many players have dubbed as “cute.” There are a ton of things that Baldur’s Gate 3’s Patch 7 just added to the game. Not only new evil endings that Larian previously teased but also bug fixes, new lines of dialogue, legendary actions, and even companion interactions, among many other adjustments. In a previous blog post, Larian gave some insight into what players can expect from this massive update, one of which was related to camp animations. But now that the patch is here, we finally get to see them in action. Speaking of which, players are already head over heels over one particular new interaction that’s been dubbed “cute” and “adorable.” In a Reddit thread, one user has managed to capture the moment Shadowheart pets Scratch while in camp. As if that wasn’t wholesome enough, we also got to see her saying: “What do you get up to all day without us, hmm?” Before Patch 7, Scratch would normally be seen running around in camp or playing chase if you have an Owlbear with you. This has definitely become a welcome breath of fresh air to the community, leaving many players praising the addition to the game. Seeing this, one user couldn’t help but mention: “Can a game win GOTY 2 years in a row?” “AWW! One of the Patch 7 notes today said that ‘Shadowheart will now interact with Flora and Fauna at camp’ but didn’t specify what that meant; it’s so cute to see that this is part of it,” commented another user. Meanwhile, one player claimed that this was “so needed.” They explained: “It was weird that there are animal lovers in camp, but they never actually interacted with the animals.” “Omg, that’s adorable!” one chimed in. This is just one of the many things that Patch 7 added. However, if you’re worried about your mods breaking after updating your game, you’ll want to follow these steps to stay on Patch 6 until you’re ready.

Baldur’s Gate 3 boss will take shots at your family if you pick this class Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 reacts to the player’s choices in numerous ways, but one enemy will roast your relatives if you pick a specific character class at the start of the game. In D&D/Baldur’s Gate 3, Sorcerers are spellcasters with a natural connection to magic. This usually means that one of their ancestors was a supernatural being, such as a dragon, demon, angel, genie, or elemental monster. The mechanics of how a human managed to procreate with one of these creatures is best left for the fanfic sites. Though many powerful creatures can shapeshift with the aid of magic, offering an easy solution to the biological questions raised by the Sorcerer class. At least one enemy in Baldur’s Gate 3 lacks tact when it comes to how a Sorcerer got their powers. A user on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reddit has created a thread talking about how Auntie Ethel had an insult ready for their Draconic Origin Sorcerer during their playthrough. “When first encountered, and she wanted to fuss over me, I decided to use the class option because, well, “I am magic. If I can’t cure myself, nothing you concoct will,” the OP wrote, “She snaps around and quickly cuts me down with, “You, or the dragon your blood hitched a ride with?” Auntie Ethel has insults for every class, as well as some tailored to the Origin characters. These are fitting, considering she’s a powerful Fey creature known for influencing people’s minds and wielding words as weapons. Indeed, players can also weaponize their insults in Baldur’s Gate 3, thanks to the Vicious Mockery Cantrip, which has hours of dialogue recorded for it. If you are annoyed because Auntie Ethel insulted your grandmother and her husband, Smaug, roast her yourself. Baldur’s Gate 3 responds to your decisions in many different ways, though some don’t go as far as you might expect, such as playing a Drow. Fortunately, Auntie Ethel has a custom response to your choices, though you might not appreciate it.

Baldur’s Gate 3 boss was worried final game would be too short after scrapping content Larian Studios/ DexertoLarian Studios CEO Swen Vincke revealed that the was originally afraid Baldur’s Gate 3 was going to be too short due to all the cut content. Divided into three acts, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a massive game that can take over a hundred hours to beat, especially if you’re constantly exploring every nook and cranny. However, despite that, a recent BAFTA interview with Swen Vincke revealed that the game was initially going to be longer and that many parts had to be cut, leading the CEO to be originally worried the game was going to be too short. In the interview, Swen brought up the discussion of “many things that people may not know” about the game. One of which, apparently, involves the development of Moonrise Towers in Act 2. “Well this is a really random tidbit, but Moonrise Towers used to be two towers,” he said. “And now, we shipped with only one tower. And for a long time, there was actually the ruins of the second tower, and then we removed that also.” According to Swen, the reason that the extra tower was removed was “purely productionally.” He explained that the game “was getting too big,” hence the decision to cut that part out. In addition to this, Swen mentioned that initially, Larian had many more regions they planned to make. “I was afraid the game was going to be too short originally, but I’ve notoriously always been very bad at judging the length of our games.” Speaking of cut content, devs have previously revealed that some of it included new areas for Wyll and Gortash. Wyll was supposed to have his own area in Red War College, while players would initially meet Gortash in Candlekeep, among other additions. Larian has confirmed that they will not be making a Baldur’s Gate 3 DLC or a sequel, so these additions are left out in the dark. However, that doesn’t stop the community from combing the game files to find some of the remains of the cut content that didn’t make it to the game.

Baldur’s Gate 3 players are obsessed with this boss fight Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 players have selected a few clear favorites when it comes down to the role-playing game’s best boss battles. Baldur’s Gate 3’s PC user base has been deep in the trenches for quite a while now, meaning dicussions about fan-favorite aspects of the experience are well underway. Community conversations on Reddit have already narrowed down the favored class/subclass combinations, for example. And everyone likes to make their opinion known about which companion represents the best romance option. It should come as no surprise, then, that BG3 faithful also have a favorite boss battle. But the general consensus suggests several boss encounters are worthy of praise. (Beware, spoilers may follow.) Baldur’s Gate 3 fans especially love this boss fight “Sow what’s everyone’s favorite boss,” Reddit user Gangerious_Pancreas asked in the BG3-dedicated subreddit. The original poster made their favorite clear right off the bat – Raphael. Notably, they later added, “The only boss fight in YEARS that has given me goose bumps, and made me shake. The music, the atmosphere, the build up….just perfect.” A scan of the replies indicates most commenters agree that the devlish NPC steals the show in this respect. One fellow Raphael lover gleefully wrote, “Raphael duh! He sings his own boss music and I fkn love it!” “Raphael’s arc was brilliant,” someone else praised. “Raphael clearly number 1,” reads another reply further down the thread. Myrkul seems to be second up to bat as the fan-favorite Baldur’s Gate 3 boss. In responding to the original question, one person said, “For the ambiance – Raphael. For the badass intro that had my jaw drop the first time – Myrkul.” This particular battle received several other mentions in the thread, as well. “Avatar of Myrkul had the best visual spectacle,” wrote one player. Aside from Raphael, it’s gotta be Myrkul for me. He wasn’t the hardest boss… but out of all the chosen fights and their gods, he was the one that actually felt terrifying especially with that intro,” reads another popular comment. It’ll be interesting to see if this consensus changes as time goes on. After all, PlayStation audiences probably haven’t had enough time to come to any definitive conclusions of their own.

Baldur’s Gate 3 book proves Mind Flayers can be bested by the “power of friendship” Larian StudiosOne Baldur’s Gate 3 player found a book that proved that Mind Flayers can defeated by “the power of friendship” in Larian’s in-depth RPG. Anyone who’s played Baldur’s Gate 3 knows that the Mind Flayers are the central threat that encompasses the player character and their party. The main setpiece of the prologue and the driving force of the game’s narrative is to remove the Mind Flayer tadpole from each party member’s head, as the threat will supposedly overtake the host and turn them into a Mind Flayer in due time. With this all-powerful threat looming over the party, some fans may be surprised to hear the strongest course of action against a Mind Flayer is a great group of friends, according to one in-game piece of lore. Baldur’s Gate 3 claim devs got meta with Mind Flayer book A post on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit titled, “Devs got very meta with this book,” shared a screenshot of one of the many in-game lore books. This particular book, called “On Psionic Manipulations and Countermeasures,” goes into a “thorough account of how best to protect your mind from illithid (or Mind Flayer) manipulation.” According to the book, one of the best countermeasures one can take against a Mind Flayer, aside from outright avoiding one altogether, is to “strengthen your relationship with others.” Fans were amused by the in-game tip, with many likening the phrase to popular tropes in media. “Did they really just f*cking tell us that you can beat Mind Flayers with the power of friendship?” asked one player. Another fan replied and noted that, in the instance of Baldur’s Gate 3 and the powerful companions players can recruit, it doesn’t sound so cliched. “When those friends can murder anything into submission, I do believe the power of friendship is called for.” Others noted that the description was indeed quite meta “I know everyone’s focusing on the ‘don’t trust a mind flayer’ part, but I love the ‘you need strong allies’ part because it’s basically the devs describing the way you should play the game.” While Mind Flayers are no doubt a daunting threat throughout BG3, this book just hammers home how a little help from good friends can go quite a long way.

Baldur’s Gate 3 boasts impressive performance settings on the PS5 Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 is now available on PlayStation 5 and the performance it has showcased on the console is fantastic. The game runs quite well, especially a lot smoother than its PC counterpart. Baldur’s Gate 3 PS5 launch was one of the most hyped moments for the opening week of September 2023. The successful PC launch for the game led to massive anticipation among Sony fans, which meant that Baldur’s Gate 3 on PlayStation 5 was bound to be a success. However, despite all the hype, nobody could ignore the fact that the optimization of the game is sub-par and it ran quite poorly on the PC. Fortunately, that’s not the case on PS5 as it runs exceptionally well and the number of hiccups it is facing has been reduced significantly. Baldur’s Gate 3 on PS5 showcases stable and consistent performance The PS5 version of Baldur’s Gate 3 was tested and studied in deep by Digital Foundry. They found that the game is capped at 1440p and the game runs in a similar fashion for both Performance and Quality settings. It seems the visuals for the PS5 version of the game are similar to ultra settings on PC. One of the most crucial aspects to consider here is that FSR 2 has been quite successful for the console. This is one of the major reasons behind the smooth performance of the game. Unfortunately, FSR 2 is still unavailable on the PC, but it should arrive sooner than later. When it comes to frames, Digital Foundry claims that the game maintains a stable 60 FPS for the most part in Performance mode. However, once you enter the main city the frames start dropping similar to the PC version, thereby showcasing an inherent problem with how the game has been optimized. Now, if you play the game in Quality mode, you will be locked at 30 FPS. As always, most of the game runs fine except the main city. In fact, it’s way more stable in Quality mode than in Performance mode. Regardless, the consistency that the quality mode hopes to achieve is met quite successfully. Lastly, it is important to mention here Baldur’s Gate 3 can be a bit complicated to play on the PS5 on account of the controller. The game is primarily made for a keyboard and mouse and using a controller can make navigating through the various features and combat a little problematic.

Baldur’s Gate 3 birder claims Larian doesn’t know what a blue jay is Larian StudiosA Baldur’s Gate 3 fan and avid birder has claimed that developer Larian Studios doesn’t actually know what a blue jay is. While there are plenty of humanoid NPCs to talk to in Baldur’s Gate 3, some of the most amusing conversations come from the various animals that populate each of the game’s large areas. In their adventures through Larian Studio’s sprawling RPG, players can interact with creatures like owlbear cubs, friendly dogs, squirrels, and even some birds. However, a BG3 fan and self-proclaimed “avid birder” has put forth some interesting evidence that the developer may not know what a blue jay is, based on some specific pieces of evidence throughout the game. Baldur’s Gate 3 calls out devs on blue jay behavior A Reddit user by the name AstroAri made a post on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit titled, “Larian has no idea what a blue jay is and it’s hilarious.” In the post, they said, “I’m an avid birder, and blue jays are my favorite bird. So the portrayal of blue jays in this game is hysterically funny to me. It’s extremely clear that Larian (a Belgian company) has absolutely no clue what a blue jay (a corvid endemic to North America) actually is.” The OP provided evidence for their claims, such as the blue jay in the Druid’s Grove being able to “beautifully” sing. According to them, this behavior is “unlike a real blue jay, who is only capable of screaming…” They also cited the blue jay encounter at the Rosymorn Monastery, where the bird will ask the player to help get rid of the Giant Eagles that took over his nest. “A real blue jay would call up a bunch of his blue jay friends and attack the eagles en masse in an act called mobbing, because blue jays are suicidally overconfident.” AstroAri capped off their post with the following: “Absolutely no shade at all to Larian, just poking some fun at them! I just found their portrayal of blue jays to be very funny as a Certified Bird Fan and wanted to share.” While Larian’s depiction of blue jays may not be all that accurate to real life, they certainly gave the ones you can find in Baldur’s Gate 3 quite the personalities.

Baldur’s Gate 3: Best build for Shadowheart Larian StudiosShadowheart is one of the most popular companions in Baldur’s Gate 3 – but she can only be as powerful as you need her to be with the right build. Crafting your character is one thing, but managing and leveling up the various companions who join your journey adds another layer of complexity to the game’s character development. So, here’s the best build for Shadowheart to ensure the game’s rather tortured healer is as efficient and strong as possible, so you can take down whatever enemy you come across, and maybe even romance her. Where to find and recruit Shadowheart in Baldur’s Gate 3? Shadowheart is available to recruit while you’re still aboard the Nautiloid. All you have to do is find a chamber with a bright red pod to the left as you make your way to the helm of the Nautiloid ship towards the end of the first act. Shadowheart is stuck in this very pod. Go into the room that is to the pod’s left. You will find a body, a console, and another pod inside the room. All you have to do is search the corpse to find the Eldritch Rune. After picking up the rune, go back to the other room to use the console and set Shadowheart free. Once this is done, all you have to do is pass the Illithid/Wisdom check which will set Shadowheart free and she will join your party. Best subclass for Shadowheart in Baldur’s Gate 3 It’s up to you whether you keep her original subclass or opt for a change, but the best subclass for Shadowheart is undoubtedly the Life Domain rather than her original Trickery Domain. If you do choose to change her class, then you’ll need to Respec her with Withers, which will cost you 100 Gold. Best ability score spread for Shadowheart in Baldur’s Gate 3 In the same way as her subclass, you don’t have to change these, but if you choose to, this is the best ability spread to put into Shadowheart since her main stat is Wisdom: Strength: 10 – Dexterity: 14 – Constitution: 16 – Intelligence: 8 – Wisdom: 16 – Charisma: 10 – Constitution is always a key stat to focus on as it determines your health and will likely keep you alive. Then there’s Wisdom, which is her spellcasting modifier, and a focus on Dexterity for all those key skills she needs to excel in. Best spells for Shadowheart in Baldur’s Gate 3 Being a Cleric, spells are a vital element for Shadowheart. You want to focus on her having a mixture of healing, support, and damage, especially when having her as a Companion. Here are our recommendations for the best spells for Shadowheart in Baldur’s Gate 3: Cantrip: Guidance – Cantrip: Resistance – Cantrip: Produce Flame – Level 1: Healing Word – Level 1: Protection from Evil and Good – Level 1: Cure Wounds – Level 1: Inflict Wounds – Level 1: Shield of Faith – Level 1: Command – Level 2: Spiritual Weapon – Level 2: Hold Person – Level 3: Mass Healing Word – Level 3: Remove Curse – Level 3: Glyph of Warding – Level 4: Freedom of Movement – Level 5: Insect Plague – Level 5: Dispel Evil and Good – Level 5: Flame Strike – Level 5: Planar Binding – Level 6: Heal – Level 6: Heroes’ Feast – Best Feat for Shadowheart War Caster War Caster is undeniably the best Feat for Shadowheart and is well worth adding to her character when she levels up to 20. It’ll help her concentration spells stay up, allow her to make a reaction using a spell when an enemy moves out of her threat range and will strengthen her tenfold. Best items for Shadowheart Consumable items and gear in Baldur’s Gate 3 can make a big difference when you’re building your character. Here are some of the best items you can use in the game: Adamantine Splint Armour: Reduces all incoming damage by 2 and sends attackers Reeling. Additionally, attacks can’t land critical hits on the wearer. – Boots of Aid And Comfort: Grants additional temporary HP to creatures healed by Shadowheart. – Ring of Absolute Force: Allows Shadowheart to cast the Thunderwave spell – Best build for Shadowheart in Baldur’s Gate 3 If you’re not too worried about altering her subclass, or you just want to know how to take her past 1st level, our build guide has you covered below: There you have it, that’s the best Shadowheart build in Baldur’s Gate 3. While leveling up this fantastic Companion, take a look at the best companions in Baldur’s Gate 3. You can also check out how to respec your character if you wish to explore other build options.

Baldur’s Gate 3: Best build for Karlach Larian StudiosIf you want to perfect Karlach’s build for your Baldur’s Gate 3 team, you’re in the right place. Here’s a guide detailing the best subclass and ability scores for her. Juggling companions in a game like Baldur’s Gate 3 can be a demanding task, as it involves not only advancing your character but also strategizing the growth of up to three other companions. So, if you want to put the lovable yet deadly Barbarian Karlach in your Baldur’s Gate 3 party, you’ll need an ideal build to help you along. Here’s the best Karlach build in Baldur’s Gate 3. Contents Best subclass for Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3 – Best ability score spread for Karlach – Best build for Karlach – Best subclass for Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3 There are some great subclasses for Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3, but the best one for her is undoubtedly Berserker. Not only does it match her personality perfectly, but you also get the ability to gain an extra attack while raging. Add that to your increase in strength and Karlach will be taking more enemies down than you can even imagine. Best ability score spread for Karlach You could choose to go for the recommended stats, but if you choose to truly optimize, then these are the best ability scores for Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3: Strength: 16 – Dexterity: 14 – Constitution: 16 – Intelligence: 8 – Wisdom: 12 – Charisma: 8 – With Karlach being a Barbarian, the primary focus is on Strength and Constitution, increasing the damage dealt, health, and so much more. It’s recommended to go for a higher Dexterity and Wisdom due to its AC benefits and increase in key skills like Initiative. Best build for Karlach If changing Karlach’s subclass and ability score stats aren’t what you want from this companion, then our build guide will have you covered: So there you have it, that’s the best Karlach build in Baldur’s Gate 3. While leveling her up, take a look at some of our other handy Baldur’s Gate 3 guides and content: Best Sorcerer build | Best Bard build | Best Rogue build | Best Fighter build | Best Ranger build | Best Druid build | Best Warlock build | Best Wizard build | Baldur’s Gate 3: What’s the max level cap? | Best Baldur’s Gate 3 classes tier list | How to revive characters in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Can you multiclass in Baldur’s Gate 3 | Baldur’s Gate 3 Soul Coins: How to get them & what they are | Baldur’s Gate 3: Fastest ways to get XP & level up | Baldur’s Gate 3: How to respec your character | Baldur’s Gate 3 Karmic Dice: What are they? | How to unlock Displacer Beast in Baldur’s Gate 3

Best Bard build in Baldur’s Gate 3: Race, skills, spells & more Larian StudiosUnlock the full potential of your Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3 with the perfect build guide. Dive into the best Bard build in BG3 featuring race, subclass, spells, and essential strategies. In the world of Dungeons & Dragons, Bards may be known for their comedic flair. But they wield power comparable to other classes like Druids, Sorcerers, or Wizards, armed with a versatile spell arsenal. So, if you’re looking to master the Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3, then you’ll need to know the best spells, race, subclass, and Ability Scores. Luckily, all you need to know about the best Bard build in Baldur’s Gate 3 is below. Best race to choose for a Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3 There’s a few completely different races you could choose as your Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3, each providing different features and abilities: Asmodeus Tiefling – Drow Half-Elf – Human – Despite the three different races that work for the Bard, we recommend using the Drow Half-Elf for that extra Dancing Lights cantrip. Best subclass for a Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3 Although you won’t need to worry about this until level 3, the best subclass for your Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3 is the College of Valour. With a focus on combat-based spells and offensive abilities, you can take on the battlefield whether you’re alone or with a group of friends. Best background for a Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3 Naturally, the best background for the Bard is Entertainer. It provides a fantastic bonus to some of your Charisma-based skills like Performance, and the vital Acrobatics. Along with this background, we suggest prioritizing these skills to help you on your journey: Deception – Persuasion – Insight – Perception – Survival – Best Ability Score spread for a Bard The recommended Ability Score spread for the Bard is pretty good, so there’s nothing wrong with opting for that one. However, if you want to fully optimize your character, these are the scores you should use: Strength: 12 – Dexterity: 14 – Constitution: 16 – Wisdom: 10 – Intelligence: 8 – Charisma: 16 – Charisma is the main stat for a Bard, so it’s only natural to place that at the highest. Then, matching that is Constitution which is responsible for both health and your concentration checks, which is vital for a spellcaster like this one. Best spells for a Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3 There are tons of spells to choose from in Baldur’s Gate 3, and the Bard has some great choices. So, here are the spells we recommend looking at: Cantrip: Vicious Mockery – Cantrip: Light – Cantrip: Blade Ward – Cantrip: Friends – 1st Level: Healing Word – 1st Level: Thunderwave – 1st Level: Dissonant Whispers – 1st Level: Tasha’s Hideous Laughter – 1st Level: Heroism – 2nd Level: Phantasmal Force – 2nd Level: Lesser Restoration – 2nd Level: Shatter – 3rd Level: Glyph of Warding – 3rd Level: Speak With Dead – 3rd Level: Fear – 4th Level: Greater Invisibility – 4th Level: Polymorph – 4th Level: Dimension Door – 5th Level: Mass Cure Wounds – 5th Level: Greater Restoration – 6th Level: Otto’s Irresistible Dance – Best Illithid powers for a Bard The Illithid powers aren’t for everyone, but they can be a wonderful boon to those who want to use them. Here are the best Illithis Powers for the Bard. Charm When it comes to a Bard, no Illithid spell is better than Charm. It’ll essentially prevent an enemy from attacking you until their next turn, granting your character key protection just in case something gets past the front lines. Shield of Thralls Bards are notoriously squishy, with a lower armor class and smaller health to match. So, being able to cast a shield around yourself, or an ally to get temporary hit points could be a game-changer. Add that to the fact that the shield will explode when it’s destroyed, and you have a fantastic last-ditch lifesaver. Freecast As a spellcaster, there’s no better power than being able to free cast. It means your “spell slots, charges, and similar resource costs for your next spell are removed” essentially allowing you to cast multiple spells or certain powerful spells as a bonus action. Best multiclass options for the Bard Bard and Cleric The Bard is already an extremely powerful support character, complete with tons of useful spells and a little healing. So, if you want to take that healing to a completely new level, as well as gaining a little bonus to your AC, the Cleric is the ideal multiclass. It can grant you some ideal healing spells and lets you deal some great damage in melee or ranged situations, making it extremely versatile. Sure, they might not share the same stats, but there are enough bonuses here to make it worth it. Bard and Paladin If the Cleric wasn’t for you, then you could try the Bard / Paladin multiclass option. It works in a similar way to the Cleric, granting you a little more healing and some protection should the fight end up right in front of you. Sure, it’s not as good as the Cleric, and mainly works if your main class is the Paladin rather than the Bard, but it’s still a fun option to try. Best build for a Bard in Baldur’s Gate 3 Race: Wood Half-Elf Background: Entertainer Skills: Persuasion, Insight Ability order from highest to lowest: Charisma, Constitution, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, Strength Best build: That’s all there is to know about the best Bard build in Baldur’s Gate 3. Check out how to respec your character if you wish to explore other build options. You can also take a look at the best Sorcerer build, the best Necromancer build and the best Barbarian build.

Baldur’s Gate 3 players shocked one NPC is avoided at all costs Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 players can’t believe others avoid Bernard, a Construct NPC who guards the Underdark’s Arcane Tower. Players who explore the Arcane Tower in Act One will meet Bernard on the top floor. The Construct guardian will only attack under certain circumstances, but, due to the difficulty of the fight, many players have decided to skip the encounter completely. Redditor JLapak counts as one such Baldur’s Gate 3 player, claiming Bernard’s is the only battle they avoided during their Honour Mode run. The user explained in part, “Just fought him in Tactician for the first time, and YIKES am I glad I skipped him in Honor; he just about took me apart.” While several people in the comments agreed that leaving Bernard alone on harder difficulties is a smart choice, many others questioned the need to fight him at all. It’s possible to encounter the Construct and walk away from him on a friendly note; Bernard’s known to give out hugs, too. One popular comment under the post notes, “…you don’t even have to fight him when you meet him. Just read some of the books. He can even hug you.” Someone who’s played Baldur’s Gate 3 four times added, “Me just sitting here like ‘wait, people fight Bernard?’” To make nice with Bernard, players must find command phrases written on documents scattered around Arcane Tower. Answering each of his questions with the correct answer will turn him passive, thus avoiding a fight. However, those who do face off against Bernard will have to best him in regular combat. One person in the Reddit thread suggested planting Sussur Flowers near the smaller robots to shut them down. From there, it’s a matter of drawing Bernard to the building’s edge, so Wyll can shoot him with an Eldritch Blast that knocks him off the ledge.

Baldur’s Gate 3 beats out Hogwarts Legacy and Starfield as top-grossing Steam game Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 has beaten out stiff competition from Hogwarts Legacy and Starfield to become the highest-grossing game on Steam by a strong margin. For many people, Baldur’s Gate 3 was the best game of last year, even being recognized as such at The Game Awards. Larian Studios’ effort put players amid an epic tale based on the world and mechanics of Dungeons & Dragons. With a hugely memorable cast of characters, few argued with its credentials. Hogwarts Legacy was a more complex proposition, as controversies surrounding Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling overshadowed the game’s release. Starfield is the latest offering from storied RPG developer Bethesda, though feedback from the community was less universally positive than the reception for Baldur’s Gate 3. Now, a new report has confirmed that the three games above have managed to secure the top three spots in the gross revenue charts for Steam in 2023. Baldur’s Gate 3 makes $657 million in 2023 on Steam According to a new report by VGInsights, Baldur’s Gate 3 easily beat out its nearest competitor to become the highest-grossing game on Steam in 2023. In total, Baldur’s Gate 3 drew in a spectacular $657 million, almost twice as much as its nearest competitor Hogwarts Legacy, which itself managed to accumulate an enormous $341 million. Starfield is an interesting case because it secured an impressive third place on the list despite much of its potential income being offset by a day-one Game Pass release. The final figure of $235 million was impressive regardless, but the game would likely have taken the second spot if the Xbox subscription service had not been in the picture. The rest of the top 10 was filled out by a mixture of big AAA titles and indie darlings, including Resident Evil 4, EA Sports FC 24 and survival horror Sons of the Forest. The most interesting entry was co-op horror Lethal Company, which has generated $52 million in revenue despite only releasing in October. The game averaged over 100,000 concurrent players on Steam in December and that popularity shows little sign of abating. With an all-time concurrent peak of a little under 240,000, there is huge continuing appetite for games players can experience with friends Though many of the entries in the Top 10 won’t be a surprise, the scale of the success of the Top 3 in particular may be shocking to some.

Baldur’s Gate 3 beats out Elden Ring 3 on Steam Deck for August Larian Studios, FromSoftwareBaldur’s Gate 3’s first month can add another accomplishment to its long list, as the game is the most-played Steam Deck game of August. It’s pretty safe to say that Baldur’s Gate 3 has had one of the best first months of any game in recent memory. Larian Studios’ masterpiece has gone from a D&D adaptation from a niche genre to a serious Game of the Year contender. Adding to the game’s long list of accomplishments is the news that Baldur’s Gate 3 was the most-played game on Steam Deck for the month of August, putting it ahead of other popular games that normally top the list like Elden Ring. More Steam Deck owners played Baldur’s Gate 3 last month than Elden Ring or Stardew Valley As shared by the official Steam Deck Twitter account, Baldur’s Gate 3 sits at #1 on the list of the platform’s top 20 games of August 2023. It’s followed by Elden Ring, which has been at or near the top for months now. Rounding out the top five are casual indie RPG Dave the Diver, Stardew Valley, and Vampire Survivors. Given the game’s popularity, it’s not too shocking that Baldur’s Gate 3 made the list. The fact that it beat out one of the biggest titles of last year and an ever-popular casual game like Stardew Valley that is so well-suited for a handheld system is impressive. You’d also be forgiven for being surprised that the game even runs on Steam Deck. Baldur’s Gate 3 is big and technically demanding to the point Xbox had to make an exception to its parity requirement to let Larian release a Series X|S port – though the issue there centered on a feature the Steam Deck version doesn’t have. Of course, Baldur’s Gate 3 was not the only major new release last month. Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon, also by Elden Ring developer FromSoftware, made the list too, sitting at #14. It is notable that Elden Ring has been at or near the top for months now, typically being overtaken by major Deck Verified new releases like Street Fighter 6 and Hogwarts Legacy. What will be interesting to see is how Baldur’s Gate 3 fares in September, especially in the wake of Starfield’s release.

Baldur’s Gate 3 player creates amazing parody of rock band KISS with all-Bard party Larian StudiosOne Baldur’s Gate 3 player has transformed their all-Bard party into Kith, a band that bears a striking resemblance to Kiss. Baldur’s Gate 3’s Companion and class options allow players to mix and match their merry band of adventurers. Some players prefer a well-rounded group, bringing several different class types along for the ride. Meanwhile, others like composing their parties with one type of character. An all-Druid or all-Cleric band doesn’t sound like a bad idea. But one person took this notion and built something even more exciting – an ’80s hair band. Kith may soon be taking over taverns in Baldur’s Gate 3. Baldur’s Gate 3 creates Kiss-inspired band with all-Bard party In a post on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit, a user named robot_camel87 shared a screenshot of their party members. This Redditor doesn’t align themselves with just any ordinary party, though; instead, their crew comprises nothing but Bards. Better still, they’re all modeled after Kiss, donning attire that’s as close to the glam rock look as one can get in a Medieval setting. And their name? Kith. The post is already approaching 4,000 likes, with comments suggesting that most think this particular all-Bard Baldur’s Gate 3 party works like a charm. “Damn, you beat me to it! I was going to make a group called bows and roses,” one person joked. Of course, many of the replies express their delight with cleverly pulled Kiss song lyrics. Invoking ‘Rock and Roll All Nite,” a user commented, “I want to rock and roll all niiight and kill every ghaik.” Kiss’ ‘Heaven’s On Fire’ earned a mention, too, with another response reading, “Feel my heat, taking you higher, burn with me, Vlaakith’s on fire.” Clearly, Kith could have quite a few hits on its hand if the bandmates ever decide to take this music thing seriously.

Baldur’s Gate 3 player shares simple workaround for defeating Balthazar boss Larian StudiosIn their many attempts to defeat Balthazar, one Baldur’s Gate 3 player stumbled upon a method that rids the boss of his allies. Balthazar‘s spellcasting abilities secure him a spot among the most challenging bosses in the game. But players continue to find ways to dispatch the Act 2 foe, most notably by exploiting his biggest weakness – an overreliance on spells. The latest find comes courtesy of Bwomprocker, a Reddit user who said they spent three hours struggling against the Baldur’s Gate 3 boss. After many battles, the player realized Balthazar never spawned in his skeletal allies at random. On the contrary, he could summon extra enemies based on the number of corpses lying on the battlefield. This revelation helped the Redditor devise a “mega cheese,” wherein they had “Lae’zel move almost all the corpses to a corner and push them off.” With the bodies gone from the map, Balthazar lost the ability to summon more friends, making the fight easier for Bwomprocker to overcome. Several people in the thread applauded the Redditor for figuring out a “very nice workaround.” Others also shouted developer Larian’s praises, specifically for providing players with “so many options” to navigate obstacles. Meanwhile, numerous users in the thread highlighted a few other ways players can cheese the boss battle. For example, a trick involving Sussur plants renders Balthazar’s powers of necromancy completely useless. Someone else mentioned that their stealthier approach also worked like a charm. “I just [snuck] up behind him with Karlach and stunned him for 2 turns before the dialogue. Proceeded to use my rogue to get sneak melee attacks. Worked insanely well,” the person commented. As with nearly everything else in Baldur’s Gate 3, there are multiple ways to get past Balthazar.

Baldur’s Gate 3 balances Speak with Dead in a hilariously gruesome way Larian StudiosIn an interview, Baldur’s Gate 3 director Swen Vincke revealed a game design reason for all those decapitated bodies, and it relates to one of the game’s most useful spells. Baldur’s Gate 3 is set in a dark world where danger lurks around every corner. Within that, players will often come across dead bodies, many of which can be spoken to so long as you have a party member with access to the spell “Speak with Dead.” While some won’t have much to say – especially if you’re responsible for their demise – others can reveal helpful information. Now, Larian Studios CEO and Baldur’s Gate 3 director Swen Vincke has revealed a surprising and gruesome way his team chose to balance out that spell – and it helps explain all those headless corpses players have noticed across the Sword Coast. Baldur’s Gate 3 lets players speak to any body – so long as they still have a mouth In an interview with Wizards of the Coast’s Todd Kenreck, Vincke explained the simple way Larian balanced Speak with Dead. In addition to players getting a maximum of five questions, the developers included another little trick to make it so not every body needed to have something to say. “The trick we used is any dead that still has their head,” he told Kenreck, who called it Larian’s “cheat.” Given how many bodies can be found in Baldur’s Gate 3, it makes perfect sense that Larian would need a “cheat” like this. There’s already so much dialogue in the game that having to add even more for the many, many bodies found throughout the world would have been unrealistic. This also explains why so many bodies in the game are missing their heads. Sure, it’s not a surprise that in a brutal wartorn world there’d be some decapitations, but the game definitely has more headless corpses than you’d expect. The rest of the interview is also worthwhile for Baldur’s Gate fans, as Vincke shares plenty of great insights, such as the reason why all your companions have been so thirsty and his thoughts on raising the game’s current level cap in the future. If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Auntie Ethel is still surprising with painfully accurate insults Larian StudiosPlayers in Baldur’s Gate 3 are still being stun-locked by the sheer accuracy of Auntie Ethel’s painful insults, smacking them right where it hurts. Baldur’s Gate 3 is all about getting immersed in the land of Faerun. From carefully creating your Tav to selecting your class and what companions you want along for the run, the game really lets you choose how you want to play. There are a multitude of races you can choose from as well, letting you get into the RP elements of the RPG if you wish. And these have an effects on the gameplay as well, as certain races have advantages or alliances with NPCs that can let you skip through areas or make new enemies. However, regardless of which race you choose, you won’t be safe from Auntie Ethel’s vicious insults, many of which have completely taken players by surprise. One Redditor was taken aback whilst roleplaying as a human Tav. Starting out as a good-for-nothing street urchin, they were attempting to make their character an absolute nobody, who was swept up in crazy events and ended up way out of their depth. Surprisingly, Auntie Ethel noticed. “A human! So desperate to be special!” she taunted. “My jaw dropped. I know it’s one of the pre-written lines, I know humans do tend to be seen as boring in D&D, etc etc but wow, super spooky coincidence with Ethel absolutely clocking the insecurity at the heart of my Tav’s RP playthrough. What an amazing game,” they shared. Others chimed in, sharing their experience of how Ethel verbally beat down best boy Astarion, as well as being brutal depending on your class. “Ethel also tells Astarion to get the rats out of his teeth and something else about him being meant to be a slave. Also if you’re a cleric she insults your God.” “Astarion failed a saving throw against ‘Deep down, you like being leashed, don’t you?’ and I gasped aloud. Vicious mockery indeed!” another explained. Fortunately, Ethel’s vicious insults give you even more incentive to take her down, which can give you access to some pretty fantastic loot.

Should you give your eye to Auntie Ethel in Baldur’s Gate 3? Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 is a game rife with difficult choices, including when Auntie Ethel offers to ‘kiss’ your eye to rid you of the Mindflayer parasite. Auntie Ethel regularly appears in the game, often when you least expect it, throwing a wrench in your plans with her questionable actions. One such time is when she offers to help your Mindflayer parasite problem, by offering to “kiss” your eye and remove the ailment. So, should you accept or is that possibly the worst mistake your character can make? Let’s take a look and find out. Caution: Minor spoilers ahead. What happens if you give Auntie Ethel your eye? Things will go completely wrong if you allow Auntie Ethel to take your eye out in Baldur’s Gate 3 so you shouldn’t allow her to kiss your eye. This old woman is a hag, and not someone as sweet as she appears to be. You might be tempted to give your eye for the cure. However, upon doing that, you’ll receive Paid the Price, a permanent debuff for the rest of the game. This will give you +1 on Intimidation checks but a disadvantage on perception checks and attacks against hags. Where to find Auntie Ethel? You’ll find Auntie Ethel while passing by a tea house on the road to Sunlit Wetlands arguing with two brothers around the southern areas of the map. You can check the image above to find the exact location. If you choose to follow her questline, she will then lead you to her sunlit grove which is later revealed to be a dank swamp as she offers you the trade to remove the Mindflayer parasite. Now you know whether or not you should give your eye to Auntie Ethel the hag. If you’re wondering what these Mind Flayer parasites are, you can check out the Illithids’ powers and who they are. You can also take a look at the fastest ways to level up if you wish to take out Ethel in a boss battle.

Baldur’s Gate 3’s Auntie Ethel has the most brutal class insults Larian StudiosBaldur’s Gate 3 is filled with clever insults, and Auntie Ethel saves her most cutting remarks for certain character classes. Since its launch, Baldur’s Gate 3 has received nothing but praise for its writing. The poignant storytelling sits at the center of the acclaim, of course, yet even some minor lines of dialogue have garnered applause. Reddit user peparony recently highlighted the mocking comments Auntie Ethel delivers when conversing with specific character classes. “Auntie’s class-specific insults crack me up,” the poster shared on the BG3 subreddit. They noted that Baldur’s Gate 3 players who meet Auntie Ethel as a Barbarian will be called “brainless.” Meanwhile, Paladins can expect the NPC to describe them as a “crusty old blowhard obsessed with their oath.” Players agree that Auntie Ethel’s cutting remarks count among the game’s most vicious. Given that she’s a Hag who revels in bringing suffering to others, it should come as no surprise. One person in the Reddit thread said of her insults, “Ethel’s vicious mockeries are by far the best because they’re PERSONAL.” Some of Ethel’s Origin-specific gibes further drive this point home. For example, the character tells Lae’zel, “Do you miss kissing Vlaakith’s feet, gith?” One cruel remark to Shadowheart reads, “Why would Shar love you when no one else does?” Auntie Ethel isn’t the only Baldur’s Gate 3 character who dishes out mean-spirited insults, either. During combat, players can hear hundreds of mockery lines, all geared toward getting under an enemy’s skin. One such insult includes, “Your body is a temple… to an idiot god.” Another popular line that gets thrown around is “It vexes me to know of you.” And “Pernicious, putrifying pissant” serves as another favorite mid-battle gibe.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Astarion voice actor is so good he’s winning over haters Larian StudiosAstarion in Baldur’s Gate 3 might not be the most likable character from the get-go, but the performance of his voice actor elevates the companion, helping to win over his haters. First impressions are important and unfortunately for Astarion from Baldur’s Gate 3, he doesn’t leave a good one. This is because when you first meet him, he puts a knife to your throat, before you either slip from his grasp or the parasites intervene. The shared plight of being infected with Mind Flayer tadpoles prompts you to put aside your differences and take his vampire spawn into your party. Unfortunately, Astarion has other strikes against him, such as wanting to drink your blood and generally being a smarmy jerk at every turn. A character like Astarion could easily have been reviled by the players, but he was elevated in the eyes of many thanks to the amazing performance by his voice actor, Neil Newbon. As discussed by fans online, people who were initially turned off by Astarion slowly succumbed to his charms and grew to appreciate the depths of his character, which slowly came out over the course of the game. Newbon’s performance is key to this, explaining why he has won numerous awards for the role. It also helps that Astarion is an excellent Rogue. In a game filled with traps that need spotting/disarming and locks that need picking, his skills will greatly increase your chance of survival. There’s a huge incentive to keep him in your party, especially if you want to play anything other than a Rogue. Astarion isn’t the only character with a rough outer shell; Gale, Lae’zel, and Shadowheart can be equally nasty and off-putting in their introductions. The beauty of Baldur’s Gate 3 is that it makes you care about these flawed people who have been gathered together under unique circumstances, and it’s the performance from all of the actors who were integral to getting you invested. Astarion might introduce himself at the point of a blade, but by the end of the game, you’ll have forgotten all about it.

Baldur’s Gate 3 player realizes they cannot fix Astarion Larian StudiosWhile playing through Act 3, a Baldur’s Gate 3 player finally concluded that there’s no way of fixing Astarion. Companions in Baldur’s Gate 3 have their own trials and tribulations to work through over the course of the experience. Thankfully, players can lend a helping hand by completing companion-centric side quests. But because the role-playing title features such a colorful cast of characters, not every companion will finish their arc as a hero. One hopeful player learned this lesson the hard way after completing Astarion’s arc and realizing they’re “going to have to deal with him.” (Spoilers follow for Baldur’s Gate 3.) Baldur’s Gate 3 player “made a terrible mistake” with Astarion In a Reddit thread, a user named Confident-Gas-6563 shared their disappointment in Astarion’s refusal to be better. The Redditor said they’ve helped their companions become better versions of themselves by “letting them make their own choices.” And the assumption with Astarion was that he’d lean toward being “a depressed loner who wants to get back at daddy and stop his abuse.” Upon completing the Ascension mission, however, the user realized that Ascendant Astarion is now “a confident vampire lord who’s talking about making an army to plunge the world into darkness.” Now the player’s thinking their only option is to “deal with him… I guess lucky for me Karlach can kill him in two or three attacks, so I got that going for me.” Other BG3 fans in the comments don’t understand why the Redditor trusted Astarion to begin with. One response reads, “Gotta say, trusting the guy who has repeatedly spoken of taking control of tadpoles, cults, elder brains, and anything else he thinks he might be able to control to dominate masses of people is definitely a show of faith on your part.” More people reminded the player that Astarion made his intentions clear from the very start. It seems most have accepted that there really is no fixing bad boys, no matter how hard one tries. There is a way to prevent Ascendant Astarion from coming to power, thereby saving thousands of vampire spawn. (It takes a lot of convincing on the player’s part, though.) And, by all accounts, the unascended version of the character is much more pleasant to be around. Ultimately, players have to decide what works best for their own story.