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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 ธ.ค. 2024
- Baldur's Gate 3 changed gaming. In this video i'll break down why.
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The reason Baldur's Gate 3 is so successful is because of Swen Vincke! Swen is an OG developer from the glory days of video games. He has incorporated what video games were back in the good old days into what Larian stands for today. I just can't wait for what they do next i really can't wait!
I absolutely agree. Everything I heard and have seen from this man is a recommendation for his person.
I don’t think it’s just that but also the fact that the studio is independent. So making a genuinely good game that sells well is life or death for them
@@rikimarizard While I agree with the general idea that independent is important here, I do not think, that they made 3 huge updates with basically DLC content, just because it is "life or death" for them. It is the appreciation and love of their work, that speaks here.
Larian has made so much money from the initial sales already, that everybody would think "its life or death -- just make a DLC or just make the next game to use that success" -- no they make free expansions!
He would say it's his team. Which of course, ironically, why it's him.
Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous beats Baldurs Gate 3 any day of the week. It is basically 3.5 DnD rules vs simplified 5th DnD rules.
BG3 ist not GotY, it is GotD.
For me personally it is the best game I ever played. And I hope for more to come from Larian.
At the moment it is GOTC. It is the new gold standard to which all other RPGs will be measured up to.
Same!
You’re not alone!
In over 30 years of gaming Bg3 and rdr2 are by far the best games I have ever had the pleasure of playing
@@bassdeff8819decade makes more sense
Pathfinder wotr surpasses BG3 without mods. Owlcat games and Cd projekt i would argue are still ahead of Larian Studios.
This is so true, I used to play only the sims 4 but since playing BG3 i barely thought about it since. I have so much respect for BG3
Other studios force you to pay money for a fraction of what Larian offers for free. Patch 7 was supposed to be "the last one" but now they're coming out with patch 8 which adds, among other things, *12 new subclasses.*
They added *12 new ways to play the game.* For free.
You know a game is truly something special when you still find new content even after almost a thousand hours. On my current playthrough, I just found out that I could give the noblestalk mushroom to Shadowheart and you'll get new dialogue. After all those playthroughs, it never occurred to me that I should try that.
indeed. Over 2000 hours and still new things are turning up
800+ hours finished the game 3 times, on my fourth run (first time playing legacy character Gale) and I am still discovering new things. Shocked to see the cat on my first rest hahah
You can also do that for dark urge 👀 but yeah you're totally right. Using speak to the dead on the bed of corpses near Yurgir is one of my favorite rare interactions, and I only recently found out that you can see a zombie version of Minthara in act 2 if you do specific stuff. It's honestly so wild, it's like they accounted for almost everything
You can talk about BG3 for hours, about everything that is outstanding about this game, and also about the studio that is so different to what we have become used to, and still not be able to put your finger on what exactly happened with this unexpected success.
For me personally something Swen Vincke himself said might boil it down the best:
I don't develop games to make money. I make money to develop games.
And man, do I feel that. I get shivers each and every time I start playing and the first notes of the music start.
I have been playing games since, dunno, 1980 or so, and there are many I love and always will, but something quite like that has never happened to me before. And I am deeply, truly grateful for that.
I remember 5 or so years ago when publishers were saying 'no one wants to play single player games anymore.' I hope that we get a wide wealth of large immersive 1P games trying to catch BG3's success.
The reality is that "no one wants to play single player SLOPS anymore". Companies got too comfortable with a passive audience that seemed to forget what quality gaming actually was. Millennials remember a time were gaming was different while gen-z and alpha grew up with Fortnite and all the slops that these gaming companies made to set the awful standar we have today. But Larian showed us how gaming used to be once....and the other studios hated them for it.
Andrew Wilson, I would guess, CEO of EA, just sounds like the type of absolutely corpo beast that he comes off as. To be fair, he has been saying it for years, just like EA. "Single player games are dead" EA in 2010, when they already own Bioware, the year ME2 was released. EA uppers legit think they figured it out with re-packing the sport games each year, and, to be fair, they kind of did, that's the truth of the market. They just can't see that they are ignorant of industry in general, besides preying on sports fanst, they see live-service make money and go full fking ork "me smart, multiplayer make money, Bioware make live-service game for me, me make money". Then they see GoW or some other single player making nice amount of money and overall praise, GoTY win or whatever, and they go again "me smart, single-player make money, Bioware make single-player game for me now, me make money"
I think one of the biggest things Larian did for their game that other studios will never do, is making a whole bunch of content that most players won't ever experience in their game. Most AAA studios would see that as a waste. But until other studios trying to make RPGs are willing to do that, they will never make true RPGs. Their choices will always remain at different flavors of yes for every dialog tree.
This is what blew me away with Larian. My first experience with Larian is Divinity Original Sin 1 EE, and even that had quests that can be resolved multiple ways, as well as content that are completely missable! Then, DOS2 came along, expanding on the "open-world" with hidden armor sets that require a specific stat spread to obtain, or a dialogue quest that either requires you to read through in-game books to resolve OR be an undead, etc. And of course, all the dialogue interactions with animals! Larian doesn't shy away from not holding the player's hands (may or may not be a bad thing, depending on who you ask) and would even put hidden dialogue that requires a specific action to be done, such as in DOS2, teleporting a boss unit into a cage triggering new lines from them!
Exactly. Even if most players pick mostly the same choices, the fact that there are so many possibilities is what blows people away & is definitely a factor to the huge appeal to the game.
One of the best things that larian studios did that when people were dissatisfied with the ending due to the lack of closure, many people wanted something like a slideshow like we usually see in Crpgs, they literally created an entire new epilogue that brings everything together and they are all fully voice acted and animated turning a negative point to a strong positive point, just goes to show that these guys are the rare exception of the industry.
“Gamers don’t expect indies to measure to Triple-A titles”
Suddenly I’m having flashbacks to when WrestleQuest released and some major outlets where dissing on the game for “not being like Baldur’s Gate 3” but then you have games like Starfield and Failguard where “it’s ok not to be BG3”
The problem with AAA games is that there is a pattern of overpromising and underdelivering. That's not a lasting strategy. Larian didn't overpromise and exceeded expectations; essentially the opposite strategy. It also helps that Larian has a CEO that actually is into gaming.
They truly did create a timeless gem of a game! And yet, they did not try to milk every dollar they could out of it. That to me is the true definition of respecting your audience! I can really see BG3 becoming the new Skyrim when it comes to player count over time
I don't see BG3 taking the place of a skyrim. They are too different in terms of game design. BG3 is an all through handcrafted experience, skyrim is a more generic sandbox experience with a lot of hand crafted content. You would think generic sounds dull, but it is actually an advantage, especially when it comes to modding.
@Sierraone1 I can see what you mean, but I can see the modding community carrying it very far into the future. I mean, Skyrim player's count on Steam wasn't even close to BG3 after a year of release. I guess we'll have to wait and see, but I definitely think their numbers might dethrone the reigning champion 🏆
Speaking of not trying to milk every dollar, the next patch is giving us a new subclass for each of the 12 classes FOR FREE!!
Agree with you. My friend convinced me to give it a try and I'm glad I did. It normally isn't my type of game but thet changed. It makes me wish they'd make a mass effect game like this. Or at least some studio makes a space themed one
...XCom and XCom2 clears their throat...
@@jimbotronic8834 eh, I tried them. They're okay but it has been a while. I'll probably give them another try sometime
They are
Check out Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader
Have you tried Rogue Trader?
To put it into perspective, my one friend played the first 2 acts on his potato PC. When he got to act 3, his computer couldn't handle it anymore. Within a week he ordered $2,500 worth of new PC parts so he could finish the game.
The thing witch baldurs gate 3 and larian as a studio is that you can really feel all the love and effort of the entire teams, you can really tell that they love what they are doing and want to create fantastic stories for everyone to enjoy instead of just another money source. My respect for larian doesn’t just come from their community support and awsome games but also the fact that they seem to listen to their devs instead of pushing them to literal insanity like some other studios does.
I wouldn't say that gamers expectations have risen, we've always wanted a complete experience that doesn't talk down at us, is fun, and actually works...that being said, Larion absolutely gave us that with BG3. Like you mentioned in the video, they had a purpose and a targeted audience they went for and they supported the game post launch. Give us these things and we'll give you our money. Attack us for not wanting your slop and we'll close wallets.
I 100% agree with what you said, especially about communication with the audience, and especially communicating with your "core" audience first, whatever the size of this "core" is.
To me, it boils down to these
- They completely removed the middleman and corporate language when it comes to communicating the audience, which also made some Panels from Hell extremely chaotic lol, but still fun. They basically go "hey, guys, this is what we are going to do, how is it?". Each presentation on their own channel, reading what chat says, doing so cool stuff while showcasing the game. Somehow, it is gaming marketing 2.0, even tho it is pretty simple. Maybe it comes from experiencing almost bankruptcy and actually being poor, maybe from Kickstarter roots of both DOS games, idk. I don't remember the full context of the story, but saw a video either Jesse Cox or itemJP talking about how 10-12 years ago Swen literally alone with his laptop showing up to their place to do a preview of DOS1, going "hey, we made a made game, but we're doing Kickstarter for a bit more funding, let's play some of it, and maybe you can help showcase it a bit" (yeah, found it, Jesse Cox literally helping to promote their Kickstarter campaign 11 years ago)
- The game is actually insane as an RPG. In terms of actual roleplay and variants of character you want to realize in the RPG, it is the best roleplaying game (it is actually not even a standard videogame type RPG, but closer to irl roleplaying experience, which was the intent, I guess). In terms of reactivity to any choices you make, it is also the most reactive RPG I've ever played. That, matched with everything else being at least (!) very good, if not great, creates a unique experience. I think it does map design and exploration and quest design basically second to none. And that's all without mentioning characters, no just companions.
- Not dealing with giant corporate publisher, be that self-publishing, like Larian, or finding some other actual devs and not corpos to publish you (like Owlcat started publishing indie projects). Basically maintaining creative freedom and actually making what you want to make (and to play). Corporate publishing sucks, especially if they completely own the studio. It will destroy creative devs and aspiring studios, it will squeeze everything from them and leave them dry doing "support" or just close them eventually. We know how Xbox evaluated BG3, we know that if they were under any publisher the idea of making AAA cRPG would be laughed at, because it is a niche subgenre, it is turn-based, all of that. What publishers don't realize, while trying to farm quarterly profits, and to be fair, doing it successfully, is that the general gaming public doesn't really care if the game is complex or not, about niche and all that. As soon as the level of presentation was done right, with AAA budget and standards, nobody cared that it was a turn-based cRPG that you need 30+h of learning experience to sink in to understand how it works. And let's be real, the budget for BG3 is nowhere near some other AAA RPGs released in recent years (yes, it is lower, and in some cases much lower)
Personally, Mass Effect still is, and probably will always the best sci-fi game, and specifically ME1 is still my number 1, but BG3 now shares the spot. And when it comes to fantasy RPGs, if we remove ME1 out of the equation, BG3 clears for me, no question xD.
Baldur's gate 3 changed everything...by doing what og bioware did back in the day but with current technology. The state of videogames in 2024 is something to be studied under a microscope.
I think the real sad reality is that EA took one of the most creative and talented groups of people, probably the best sci-fi and fantasy writers in the industry, and actually in general, if we're talking about the level of actual written material and worldbuilding (the group that was focused and gathered to do specifically single-player story-driven cinematic RPGs), and bashed and squeezed them year after year, while trying to fit them into something they are not tuned to do, and don't want to do. Literally worked them to limit, while also going "ughh, single player games are finished". It is actually a horrible industry story what EA did with Bioware. In fact, even outside of gaming, just in general, it is a sad story of corporate overlord dominating creative people. I'm pretty sure that since 2010 they never fully did the game they actually wanted to do, without EA pushing releases, shoving an unfamiliar (and not usable for RPGs) engine down their throats, demanding making live-service games, changing direction multiple times.
OG Bioware was a lot crunchier, rushed, and quietly toxic than Larian. Plus remember all the EA crap, MTX, etc.
ooo I might give this game a try it seems fun
Yeah i heard it's pretty alright, and i heard it has feet
MM please...
@@MrHulthen Morgana has a channel of her own with tons of BG3 content lol
@@Nononomoke🤯
Just don't bother with the gloom stalker. Soooo underwhelming 😋
Before BG3 the only games that always stayed installed on my PC were Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines the original Deus Ex Fallout and New Vegas. Now BG3 has joined that lineup.
Completely agree. If a game doesn't measure up or provide a great experience like BG3, then they won't get my money. The current new game offerings are sh*t. When Patch 8 comes out I will start another playthrough of BG3 and I'll go over the 1000 hour mark. I'd really like to see a new 3rd person, party based, turned based RPG come out that is worth buying. Maybe one of Larian's new games will hit early access in 2025?
I think that the biggest problem with the gaming industry right now is that with the cost of making games going up, a lot of investors want to make their money back, so they lean more towards live service titles in an attempt to pump as much cash as possible out of a game. The end result is having games that feel incomplete as developers drop crumbs of content over time, trying to milk the game for a long timespan. The ironic thing is that in creating a satisfying, complete experience and then adding more content on top of it for no extra charge, Larian has created a game that will have a longer lifespan than most live service titles. BG3 is a tremendous accomplishment, but it might also be lightning in a bottle. I think that there is potential for some studios out there to make beloved games like BG3, but there needs to be a major shift in the industry as a whole away from the decade long development time and the 200 million dollar budgets to create the most hyper realistic graphics imaginable back to enjoyable stories and gameplay that you don't want to put down.
I’m pretty sure that other studios are looking at Larian and the artists want to create a game like BG3 but the businessmen are wondering why they are leaving money on the table. So what we’re going to get are a wave of overly monetized efforts with a BG3 aesthetic. And they won’t be good or successful. Then the businessmen will blame the devs and we’ll see layoffs. Chasing trends is not in reality a recipe for success but setting trends can involve more risk than the money guys are willing to accept with a big budget project.
Man I'm so envious right now of people that are into BG3. You're right one of the reasons of their success is the focus on a specific genre and player. I loved Mass Effect and DA but one of the reasons was their more streamlined approach to RPG and the amazing lore that was built from the ground up. I tried BG3 last year after all the praise it was getting but just couldn't get into the turn based mechanic and it just felt too overwhelmingly big and open ended. The story didn't grab me that much and of course the whole DnD world is built upon, with its rules and lore felt too weird and foreign for me as a newcomer unless I spent hours reading stuff online. Maybe I'll give it another shot to see if it clicks if I spent more time with it.
That is exactly the same I feel about the game! It really is overwhelming, this game is VERY non-linear, and it confuses me personally. Probably that's why I like the DA formula. I'm playing Mass Effect right now and I like the approach there, and overall the first game as well. So I suppose it is not that I like fantasy (as I thought before that), but the way story is unfolding and how options are presented to the player. When I played BG3 myself I was... disappointed not due to that game is bad or low quality - no, I just wasn't that interested, bored even, and I was overwhelmed, but somehow each and every person seemed to praise it very highly (which suggested it would appeal to me as well since it is unversally acclaimed - "what could go wrong", I thought)
I'll also give another shot, probably after the next patch, maybe add some mods to make gameplay easier and less overwhelming, as much as it possible...
By the way - being envious about people that are into BG3 - that is a great description, that's probably it! Well, at least I have ME LE to play, it did manage to pull me in this universe and characters, so that's a win!
I get the game isn't for everyone; but if you really want to get into it (somewhat against your own instincts) then it's going to take a while. The story doesn't truly grab you until a few dozen hours into the campaign sometime in Act 2. Act 1 is great, don't get me wrong, but it's filled with WAY more questions than answers for somebody trying to get into the game; both lore/story wise as well as game mechanics. Fwiw, you don't HAVE to know all that much mechanically if you play on one of the easier difficulties if you found the combat mechanics too confusing/tedious. You could always try playing with a friend who has played BG3 to help guide you through the game mechanics. There's TONS of surface knowledge that's easy to master but it's so much that it's overwhelming trying to identify what is valuable, somebody with experience can drip-feed tidbits of tips along the journey.
GL HF
@@scalpelheals4857 By the way, I played on the easiest difficulty, and combat was still SO tedious and overwhelming. Any good guides out there to make the game less... well, tedious and overwhelming? I suppose the game doesn't do a great job at explaining the mechanics as much as needed.
Doesn't going to Act 2 cuts off a lot of things from Act 1?
@@Horymysl Yeah exact same here, I also played on easy and still felt overwhelming. I'm also planning to give it another go after the newest patch but I didn't think about mods so that's something I could check as well.
I now feel envious too that you get to experience ME for the first time :P I'm actually not the biggest fan of medieval fantasy, I'm more of a sci-fi person, that's why it was way easier for me to get into Mass Effect or Cyberpunk 2077. I just feel like fantasy is soo over saturated in the medium. I felt a similar way back when I tried The Witcher 3 and after quitting and trying again I did manage to get into it and ended up loving it (playing on easy mind you). So I'm hoping the same thing happen with BG3
Sucks for you :/
Echoing what everyone is saying, Sven does this because he like games, just look at the panels, everyone in character, the snippets cosplaying. Something to note too, Larian is a private company, so no shareholders to breathing down your neck demanding constant growth. Sven actually said in one interview that BG3 is not his ideal game, he wants to create something even bigger and better. So we got something to look for.
I have been playing DnD (and other RPGs) since the Mid 80's and Video Games even longer (the Atari). I first discovered Divinity Original Sin around 2015. I put hundreds of hours into DOS2 and when I heard they were going to be doing BG3, I was excited.
Here are a few things I feel makes BG3 and Larian Studios so special.
1) Stayed true to the source material. When there were deviations, Larian was open as to why those were needed (Like the removal of Dispel Magic)
2) Honesty and Communication. The communication from Larian is second to none and even if plans were delayed, they were honest about it and kept the fanbase as informed as possible (Cross Platform play)
3) For Gamers by Gamers. Sven has stressed that they are making a game that they want to play, and that passion shows. Yet on the flip side, they take the input from the entire community to improve upon it. I think Sabre has a similar mindset with SM2: It is no longer the Studio's game once released, it belongs to the consumer; the Studio becomes the Curator.
I'm not the gamer I used to be. I usually play between two and four new games a year.
For the past year I've exclusively played BG3. I've racked up hundreds upon hundreds of hours. I'm excited to finish one playthrough just so I can't start my next two hundred hour campaign. This game is the greatest game I've ever played and it is a miracle.
Re:Execs panicing over new standard, you do remember when they did that right after BG3 was released? When every gaming company head gave interviews saying how unfair it was for gamers to expect this level of quality? :)
I’ve never been a fan of this genre and usually avoided games like this, but I decided to give Baldur’s Gate 3 a chance today. At first, it felt really confusing since I’m completely new to this type of game, but to my surprise, I ended up enjoying it a lot. The story and gameplay are incredibly intriguing, and I’m definitely going to keep playing. The dice mechanic still feels a bit strange and even a little stupid to me, but it doesn’t really matter, I’m having a great time with it
Good luck and may you thoroughly enjoy immersing yourself in your own personal journey! Never forget, there are no wrong choices in baldur's gate 3 there are only the choices we make and that are consequences :-)! Happy travels!
There are so many things that put Baldur's Gate 3 way ahead of literally every other studio, and it's that they actually have added content to the game post launch that people wanted and asked for. Not just bug fixes, not just features that were in the works but didn't make it by launch, but actual content that people wanted. And while I really like Dragon Age The Veilguard, I don't believe we'll ever see Bioware add the small things that people are begging for, such as the option to chat casually with our companions in the lighthouse.
Larian did that, and have added tons of small updates like that. And that just shows an amazing amount of respect to the players of the game, that I've never seen before in a game of the scale that BG3 is.
Yeah I doubt Veilguard will be getting tons of post-launch updates other than fixes. The other team is probably itching to keep working on Mass Effect, and honestly, that's probably for the best.
Also pays off. I bought the basegame at launch, loved it, so bought the collector's edition to and another copy for my significant other. thats 3 copies of the game sold within the same household lol.
One thing I think you are missing is the change that occurred in the industry where for certain AAA studios adjusted their product and customer base, The product is the consumers and the customer base is the investors.
It reminds me A LOT of CD Projekt Red when Witcher 3 came out, all the stuff they added for free, and the DLCs were 10-20 hours of more content.
Hulten, putting user metacritic scores as an example is useless. Put Steam ratings instead because is people that actually played the game.
Another game that have an insane amount of choices and consequences is Pathfinder WOTR (not in a cinematic way). Also the character creation and level up options are insane.
Might have been a better example, true. I'll think of that until next time :)
No game does choice and options like BG3. Not just dialogue. But missions, combat, exploration, mixing of items, spells, weapon dmg etc. Its nuts. A dozen variations of everything.
Gj Mr.Hulthen. Keep going.
The only devs who could have compared were CD Projekt… they released substantial content updates and patches for free, leaving only the even more substantial EXPANSIONS for paid content.
That is, until they dropped Cyberpunk2077. But even now, I think their goodwill has somewhat returned with the Liberty City update, as well as their association with GOG, so gamers may be willing to give them a second chance with the new upcoming Witcher game in a couple years. A bit more cautious, yes, but not so much as to heavily abstain from them.
For me, playing BG3 reminded me hugely of the same feeling of revelation that playing Witcher 3 did on launch. A game that raises the bar.
I have so much love for this game. My wife and I are currently on our 2nd playthrough, she's playing as The Dark Urge this time. The mods have also made it feel like a new game.
It warms my heart that Larian got the success they deserved! I rememeber playing bg3 early access in 2020 and so in awe at the how much content was in a barely finished Act 1. I raved about bg3 for years before full release and knew it was going to be a phenomenal game. It's been 5 years and it's like the only game I play cuz I just don't have as much fun as with other games, I find myself being wishing I was just playing bg3 lol
i got this game for my birthday and its helping me get through a lot of hard times :) i think its cuz i was just always immersed in the story and characters, every character felt relatable with dialog that just felt pretty surreal. I'm not saying i experience what a Dark priestess with a worm in her brain experiences on a day to day basis but watching Shadowheart go through a lot of difficult struggles and options in her play-thru made me love her sm. Not just the characters but its just so repayable even if you finish the game you can still start out with a new experience and realized you miss out on so much boss battles and small details
I have discovered BG3 because of "Veilguard". I have heard about it before but didn't buy it - I am unfamiliar with D&D you see.
However, the comparisons netween BioWare's disaster and BG3 made me buy the latter (Failguard went into the "refund and ignore" pile).
No regrets.
I actually play veilguard daily. I have nothing to compare it to. lol never played any dragon age game, never played a dark souls game. This is my first fantasy slash/shoot and dodge type of game and in 33. I been wasting my life playing shooters my whole life. Now I love all turn based games strategic games are my favorite now. And if it’s an action game; I go with anything fantasy d&d type games now .
If you want to play any of the other Dragon Age games, I highly recommend Origins. This was BG2’s spiritual successor.
And I want to rediscover it because I only played like 10 hrs or so last year. But thinking about the turn based, ackward controls imo and that overwhelming feeling I had makes me stop myself. Veilguard may be a slop but being familiar with the lore and world in a "intimate" way goes a long way.
Simple Facts other devs should learn from, but propably many won't. Personally, i am anxious about Bloodlines 2 because I am an avid fan of the first game and what I have seen so far is just not worthy of that name.
I never thought I'd actually say this, but the game actually feels cheap because of the sheer amount of content you get. I've got over 400 hours in this game, and there is still so much I haven't seen. The only gripe I have is bugs, which I've had to delete entire campaigns over, but that just comes with the territory, unfortunately.
This video was so awsome and is so much true. I discovered BG3 this year, thanks to a friend who invited me to play on coop, i had to buy to myself as a D&D fan, atm im at act 3 at final boss, plan to finish today and start over another playthrough. Im in 200 hours played on steam and did like 2/3 playthroughs on friends saves, this game is so awsome, can't wait to start getting some mods and hopefully that update next year =D
I want baldurs gate 3 type of game but in a sci fi setting or cyberpunk aesthetic 😭 I’ll even play their version of nasa punk.
that would be amazing!
@ right!!! I haven’t played balders gate 3 because the phantasy genre just doesn’t appeal to me but some the effort they put in it is something I wish a game like starfield had a fraction of. A space opera or cyberpunk thriller given the same attention to detail…mannn I might need to send an email 😭
Didn't Swen Vincke already hint at one of the two new games they are working on is a Sci-Fi?
I'm over here hoping for them(or at least Wotc with their game engine) to make Icewind Dale 3
This game is so wild for me because I have never played a dnd style game ever before. The only other turn based game I play is civ v. I was instantly hooked with this game. It’s so fascinating how replay able it is even though it is a story game.
Just finished my first play through yesterday. I immediately went on the mod manager and jumped into a new character. Crossplay will have me playing like 4 multiplayer campaigns at once. I can’t see Larian making anything bad after this. Divinity was also incredible.
I'm glad everyone is enjoying BG3 the way they are.....for years I had been playing Divinity: Original Sin, and wondering why companies like FromSoft get so much credit for games that were great but were fairly overrated, while ones like Larian get overlooked.
But no, BG3 didn't change anything for me. Larian still in the very highly regarded place they have always been.
That said, the true irony here, is that BG3 wasn't even my GOTY that year. My actual GOTY was Armored Core 6, because I think it has better combat, better story, and even better characters. So no, I am not of this mindset, and I definitely did not see that coming.
I hope Owlcat and Larian make a colab to create the 3. Pathfiner game. Both of them are the GOAT
A great video with a lot of a salient points however I feel it’s important to point to what happened with CDPR and Cyberpunk.
At the time they were the studio that could do no wrong and had legions of fans praising their every apparently consumer friendly move post Witcher 3 and its DLC’s (very rightly of course) and then, unfortunately, they released a mess that was 2077 at launch.
They are the cautionary tale for Larian to heed. Because CDPR may’ve fixed 2077 and put out an amazing dlc in Phantom Liberty but they lost a lot of trust with consumers following the original debacle and they’ve never gotten it back.
BG3 is the reason why i love gaming. Larian produced an absolute gem. They've set the standard for what a modern RPG should more or less be. I would also consider their previous title Divinity Original Sin 2 to be a really, really good game too. Is it exactly what BG 3 is no, but there's a whole lot to love in that title too. Larian to me is what i used to feel about BGS and their Elder Scrolls/Fallout games. Modern BGS can't compete in terms of quality to what BG3 is. Even though Larian now has fully committed to producing 2 new games simutaneously, they're still dropping patches for a game that's now over 2 years old. For free. You can't beat their love of their game, and their appreciation of their fans. Truly a rare gem in this day and age where developers outside of them try to milk us consumers for every possible dollar/euro. Outside of perhaps GTA VI, the only games i'm truly looking forward to following its development are Larian's next two games. I'm assuming one is probably DOS3 and the other who knows? Either way, I'm really excited for both, as i'm excited to get patch 8 for BG3.
I have seen in the comments here a few people who want to try BG3, but are intimidated by it because they have not played D&D or turn based/dice roll before. well, i assume if ur here with MrH, u like(d) bioware games. most people who like bioware games prefer great writing/dialogue, distinct choices/consequences, the lore, and the romances. u truly get all that with BG3, and it is very easy to learn, it even guides u thru with tutorials. it is honestly the best game ive ever played, and i didnt know anything about D&D or BG1/2. it is genuinely a masterpiece, once in a lifetime game. it is also the best money ive ever spent on a video game, to the point i feel like i got way more than i paid for, because im used to being lied to, ignored, and screwed. Larian is what bioware could have been if they hadnt sold out to EA. after 3 slaps in the face, i think its time to admit bioware is just a name kept by EA to trick us into buying their garbage.
My son got the new X Box and thus game we all got to watch and even join him in game to play it. We each got our own copy to play. Each of his friends , anyone we know who games we have invited to play with us and now they all have bought a copy. That is the ratio every game should strive for.
If I had to guess the next big Larian game. It'd have to be Ultima. If you've played the last game, it's right up their alley.
There are some light rumors that they may have a project with D&D power player Critical Roll, but that’s only speculation, though would make sense as CR is trying to expand their offerings, are developing their own RPG system, and Matt Mercer, DM for CR, voiced a semi-major character in BG3.
@@Roccondilnot to mention so then and Matt Mercer are on close terms already. Apparently they chatted quite a bit about the philosophy of dungeon mastering, etc and how best to respect player choice in a video game attempt at d&d etc.
I just got the game, and it is my first time playing an actual CRPG. I loved it from the get-go, and I’m still in Act 1 with 30 hours in!
We are at the end of the first half of the decade, as my top 3 AAA games of this last 5 years are Elder Ring, Cyberpunk 2077, and BG3
Larian's great accomplishment was making a proper CRPG with a AAA budget. There are lots of games that have as much or even more player freedom, interactivity, choices and consequences, etc., as BG3, but they are all AA at best, with no cinematics, and often with only partial voice acting.
indeed, BG3 is great but other cRPGs have done things better but don't have the cinematics or final polish to give them a large appeal.
I mean I enjoyed Baldur's Gate 3 so much and I love the fact that Larian has added all this extra content so much, I would buy the game again if I could.
You can. Give it to me!😂
The amount of gameplay reactivity to the player's actions in Baldur's gate 3 is unmatched
It's very rare for a game to nail it like that. The market was WIDE OPEN for it too. We'd been getting so many "RPGs" with very little meaningful choices, no input into your character's personality, stats don't matter, &c. I was getting tired of wasting my time and money trying them.
It's going to be a feat for Larian to top this. Apparently this isn't even the "ultimate RPG" that the studio wants to make, so it seems like they've got the ambition to raise the bar even further.
I hope they move into the sci-fi genre for a while. It's been since Mass Effect that I played a truly great sci-fi RPG. I've always wanted a Star Trek-y RPG. Please Larian 🙏🏻
As far as "instant household classics" go, the only pieces of media that hold up in the last few years are the Dune films and Balder's Gate 3. Most everything else is either too of-its-time or not popular enough to be remembered like that.
You can't honestly believe other studios will follow Larian's example.
I’m not a gamer, i hadn’t bought a game in years, but I like playing ttrpgs and I like vampires, lol, so when I found out about bg3 I was sold. Got the game and never looked back! If larians future games are this good too, I am gonna be buying and playing!
It changed me as well. I now have a shadowheart tattoo. The game physically changed me
I was pretty sad to see Humanoid Origin fail, though. People (investors) need to give those devs with good and creative intentions a chance. We want more Larians. Players have made it clear what sort of companies we want to buy from.
If you haven't already, I recommend watching Laura Fryer's "Games Industry Bubble." Interesting view and video.
But yeah- Balder's Gate 3 is easily one of the best games currently existing, especially in the RPG genre. That's coming from a diehard Skyrim fan btw.
Skyrim will always be my #1, because I'm biased and just like the overall feel and freedom. But BG3? Easily #1.5. Because it gives similar freedom and gives better graphics, story, characters, combat (specifically magic), and etc.
I have played Divinity 2 : Ego Draconis, Divinity : Dragon Commander, Divinity : Original Sin 1&2. Larian is building their games always good and better from previous games. They are improving and they dont afraid to try new ideas of their games. (Those games that i counted in the beginning of my comment are all different type of games.)
BG3 is the best game I’ve played since I started computer gaming in 1978. that’s a lot of games.
Larian is now what blizzard used to be 20 years ago. I hope they will keep the high standard in the future.
It shouldn't be so revolutionary to have a clear goal and delivering what you promised and selling a whole finished product.
How they can do better: while I've come to appreciate the turn-based combat for what it id; a visual representation of the DnD tabletop game, I would LOVE to see a mix og BG3, Mass Effect and Fallout New Vegas. Give it the player freedom of BG3, the detailed world of FNV and the extensive universe and amazing characters of Mass Effect. If Larian made a game like that, it would probably become one of my favorite games of all time, instantly
6:35 well said.
This video is well done. Next time people ask me why today gaming is disappointing, I am sending them this video. It is everything I wanted to say but couldn’t put it as well as Hulten did.
It's word of mouth. I've never played any of the originals, but I still haven't played BG3 yet and I am a big DAV fan. Once I get my new gaming desktop in, I'll probably get it on Steam.
That said, I don't think people can expect a BG3 type of AAA game as normal unless you start bringing back crunch cycles at companies... usually it is smaller studios that can get away with it for awhile, until the company is eventually bought out.
Also, I expect seeing all these underperforming games means AAA studios will be way more selective about what is produced.
BG3 is the sole reason I built my very first gaming PC, gave it to my younger brother and built another for my self.
Great video!
You forgot Pathfinder kingsmaker and pathfinder WotR both are amazing RPGs where choices really matter sometimes hours later (50h later)
You will feell similar DO2 to BD3. That's great, how the story's flow feel good. And I prefer the guys wear shining armor than a suit.
I had a hard time getting into BG3 because I’ve never been into CRPGs, recently I tried it again and this time it clicked…ironically I tried it again because played Rogue Trader which was the first CRPG game I’ve ever finished, tried Pathfinder WOTR (has not clicked yet) so I figured I’d try BG3 again and holy shit is it amazing, the choice and consequences, top tier graphics, character customization, story and character arch’s…it gives me everything I want, and it does rival my favorite game Witcher 3, I do actually love the combat in BG3 and while Witcher 3 has better stories, BG3 does keep the dark themes and has more choices that matter than any game I’ve played (even Mass Effect trilogy or Witcher). The mod support really takes it over the top…I can see it being a top 2 game of the decade, and I could understand why some would put it over Witcher 3
The thing people forget is that a lot of these studios that made great games, were only great before they got bought out by the bigger corporations. They at most get a game or a few made before the old guard is slowly fired, moved, or promoted.
Trying to be something like Rockstar isn't the norm, as even Take-Two can't copy its success with their other developers. Just look at what they did to Borderlands.
Just started my like 4th playthrough last week.
Such a great game lol
I can't seem to play for more than 20 minutes at a time without wanting to take a break, and it's hard to ever want to turn it back on until I convince myself that I'm missing out on a great game, before playing another 20 minutes, only to take a break after only a single social or combat encounter. I really don't understand my lack of drive for this type of game, but I do keep going back to it.
You can play with friends , maybe you just need more choas in your game play. Having friends in your game is a blast.
@@shellsmith831 Thank you for the suggestion. I know I'm full of excuses but I would likely have to (a) move to a location with internet faster than satellite, (b) make friends with people who own the game, and (c) learn to like online multiplayer in general. To be honest that sounds less fun than just chipping away at it by myself lol. For reference the hundreds of hours I've spent in games like Left 4 Dead and Vermintide have all been single player.
Games where "choices matter" tend to put me into a nihilistic mindset as well.
so much respect that i bought the game both on Steam and Playstation Store. i don't even care if there's no discount for the price. the game just really worth my time
I hope larians next game is action combat oriented, maybe a competitor to the witcher
Larin has master what Jprgs have been doing for years. Like final fantasy 7 remake and Final Fantasy 7 rebirth
Great video WELL SAID!
I must have gotten very lucky. I played the game at launch, and literally the only bug I encountered was one that prevented my Shadowheart romance from progressing in Act 3. Maybe because I had the game in Early Access....maybe because I played the game at a very slow pace, meaning that bugs were fixed before I got to them....who can say?
Bg3 was imo fantastic due to 3 reasons
1. Made a great game exceeding expectations
2. Owner is a gamer and old dev.
3rd and probably most important no publishers. It was all done by the studio focusing more on quality than just how fast can it be made and how can it aquire the most money
i just hope i live long enough to see Larian's next couple games
It's because at the helm of Larian we have someone who is passionate about making video games, who isn't afraid to offend or risk bankruptcy, which in my humble opinion the billion dollar corporate game studios should just take an all or nothing risk since they are just bleeding money nowadays. Not only did they even create a great game, they even went further and allowed console gamers to experience mods like PC players, not even fromsoft or the black myth wukong developers would take that extra work. If you show love to your product and love to your fans, they are going to show you the same love, loyalty and also cram their hard earned money down you throat.
BG3 is wath the games could have been, if they followed the evolution of the crpgs of the '90s (e.g. Ultima 7, Fallout 1&2, Deus Ex, etc.), without the decline and the consolitis that happened after. It's like there was a gap/stasis of 20 or more years.
If you think they can’t do it again then your wrong. They did original sin two. A place that was their own wold with its own lore and it had a similar feel. As the company grows they can do more. As long as they keep their core, a thing a lot of companies loose they will make another game that will be just as good story wise.
What? Failguard reached 5,000 players? That's almost as much as a Twitch stream :D
Larian trying to outdo BG3 is very dangerous to boast.
However, one of the big reasons I think bg3 did so well was because the world was built off of D&D 5e which is how I got interested in BG3. Critical Role and Dimension 20 and Adventure Zone have spread its word for the people who watch them and even if you don't watch them, many people have at least heard of them.
For Larian's next project, I could see them matching or outdoing BG3 if they announce they are switching to using Pathfinder 2e remaster system. Not only is it a D20 system that is not licensed and goes by the OL policies, Pathfinder JUST redid alot of their stuff in 2024 in a remaster and as a player in a RL group that is playing the system, the 3 action system would blow peoples minds! Lets not forget about Focus points which are similar to Spell slots that recover in a short rest, instead Regen after a fight is done based on how you interpret the rules! SOOOO much more versatility!
Standards are not higher, the gaming industry used to be about passion fueled games, and they were polished and nothing other than works of art that still hold up today.
No the standards did not change, the industry did, the games that are made today are merely empty shells and titles, they are now projects that promise money to shareholders and investors.
I don’t expect games to be on a BG3 level, but I do expect heart and sole to be pit into them, games are art and should be treated as such.
And if games are art, BG3 is a masterpiece.
I don't expect Larians next game to be better.
I expect Larians next game to be great in its own right, the studio respecting me as a customer and to be as invested in their games as they are in BG3.
That's what I expect, not some nebulous concept of "better than BG3" which is not really measurable anyway because their next game might be very different from BG3.
BG3 was lightning in a bottle and unlikely to be beaten any time soon by other titles. After all, what self-loathing Zoomer would enjoy an old school boomer game like BG3?
It is a game that you either try and love or you can’t get past the turn based gameplay and don’t get the hype. I feel there is no in between lol
Baldur's Gate 3 wasn't the main reason standards have gone up. When a game now cost 80-100 dollars, with less enjoyable content in them there's a problem. More people are being cautious on how they spend their money, because these games aren't cheap anymore. You want me to spend almost 100 dollars on a game, that game better be good.
When your purpose as an organization is to make a great game, not money, power and influence - you have the new organizational paradigm. And a new paradigm will outperform an old one by a huge margin.
i bought bg3 day 1 but only played it from time to time since i liked other games, those games got ruined by the devs and went back to Bg3 after 9 month hiatus, finished the 1st play through and immediately started a new one, its just the best game to deep dive into
Great video, but my comment is unrelated. Sort of. been replaying mass effect legendary edition and this is the 8th video in a week I've noticed the galaxy map screen music in the background.
I can't escape.
The next game Larian makes,I buy it,hands down no questions ask,I dont even care what tipe of game it will be