Summary
RememberBaldur’s Gate 3? I’m still working my way through Larian’s masterpiece – too many games have come out since that have required my attention – but I can see clearly that it’s unlike any other game I’ve ever played. In fact, I knew that from the first dozen hours, but my thoughts were sealed by the end of Act 1.
However, now it’s official. With Larian stepping away from theDungeons & Dragonslicence for its future projects, the chance of us experiencing an RPG anywhere near the depth and complexity with the perfect script and stunning voice work are slim to none.
Who Is Making Baldur’s Gate 4?
That’s not to say the chances are zero, however. Baldur’s Gate 4 will be made by a different studio, but it will be made. I can practically guarantee it. Larian turned this relatively niche CRPG series into a blockbuster, a household name. Hasbro would be silly not to capitalise on the popularity of Baldur’s Gate 3, but it has big boots to fill.
Whichever developer takes over from Larian will have a torrid time. How do you follow up the game of the decade? Baldur’s Gate 3 will go down as a once-in-a-generation masterpiece, a miracle of modern development, and the perfect storm of emotional conversation and fantasy fighting.
Baldur’s Gate 4 would do well to forge its own path, rather than trying to emulate what Baldur’s Gate 3 did near-perfectly. But whether or not a new developer builds on the third instalment or tries something different, the final result will be a big departure from the game we fell in love with. That’s a good thing – we don’t want games descending into mimicry – but it means we’ll never play another game like Baldur’s Gate 3.
What Next For Larian?
But will the next Larian game be like Baldur’s Gate 3? It might, but I suspect the studio will want to iterate and forge paths anew in the wake of its success. It took myriad risks to get Baldur’s Gate 3 on our shelves, and the money the game brought in will only encourage it to take more.
The lack of Dungeons & Dragons licence means that our favourite characters like Astarion and Karlach definitely won’t return, but it’s hard to see Larian straying too far from its CRPG roots. After all, the game most like Baldur’s Gate 3 is Divinity: Original Sin 2. Is Divinity: Original Sin 3 on the cards next for Larian? Potentially, but I could see the studio using the Baldur’s Gate success to launch a brand new IP first, before returning to the safety net of Divinity.
Either way, we’ll be taking (at the very least) a narrative departure for Larian’s next game, and with5e a factor in Larian leaving the D&D licence, a new approach to combat too. I’d wager we’ll see familiar systems and brilliant stories, but Larian will attempt to push the boundaries of what CRPGs can be (again), and we’ll end up with something very different to Baldur’s Gate 3, for better or for worse.
What Will Baldur’s Gate 3’s Legacy Be?
We will undoubtedly feel Baldur’s Gate 3’s effects on gaming for years, if not decades to come. I fully expect more games to follow in its storytelling footsteps in the same way that Breath of the Wild influenced countless open worlds. However, it’ll take a while for games to catch up with Larian’s masterpiece, and the copycats will never come close to the original.
The best game to take influence from Breath of the Wild was Elden Ring, which followed similar design philosophies in its open world. However, it’s a completely different game in every other way, from its brutal combat to its visual aesthetic. If Baldur’s Gate 3 influences games five years from now, the best of them will not look or play anything like it.
Put simply, no. We will never have another game like Baldur’s Gate 3, and that’s great. Because it will inspire wanton creativity and encourage developers to push boundaries as far as they will stretch without breaking, which is only a good thing. As the kids say, let them cook.
We don’t need another Baldur’s Gate 3. We don’t need Baldur’s Gate 4 to retread the same mechanics as its predecessor, or continue the stories of our beloved characters. That story is complete (if Larian ever stops updating and tweaking it). It being unique also makes Baldur’s Gate 3 that much more special. It stands alone as one of the greatest achievements in RPGs. And it will continue to do so, no matter what Larian or Hasbro does next, and no matter how many games try to emulate its systems as a shortcut to success. We don’t need another Baldur’s Gate 3, we need to enjoy the one we have.
