Summary
There are a few games I have pencilled in to play across 2024. Some are upcoming games I’ll be getting at launch, likeHellblade,Star Wars Outlaws, and (praying that the rumours are true)Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. Others are games in my backlog I’ve been meaning to get to, like finishing myYakuzaodyssey or finally startingUndertale(I know!). And one is justBaldur’s Gate 3, again. But I’m terrified of it.
One issue with playing Baldur’s Gate 3 again is simply that it is too big. It took me over 100 hours the first time, and that was with me pushing the pedal to the infernal metal towards the end to see how it all wrapped up. In a way though, this problem fixes itself - I won’t start Baldur’s Gate 3 unless game delays cause a gap in 2024’s calendar (all eyes are currently on Xbox), so in theory I’d only be playing it when there’s less rush to be on top of other games. But that’s far from the only roadblock.
The Temptation Of A Perfect Playthrough In Baldur’s Gate 3
The first time I played Baldur’s Gate 3, it was mostly by ear. I looked up TheGamer’s world famous guides if I got stuck on anything (Shar’s trials can burn in hell, though maybe they’d enjoy that), but that was it. I wasn’t above a save scum or two, but mostly I made decisions that felt right with no idea of the outcome. Now I know there were quests I missed, or cut short, as well as alternate outcomes I never got to see. I am burdened with this knowledge now, and can never have a ‘clean’ playthrough again.
When I go back, I will have forgotten parts of the game and discover them anew, but most of them will be familiar to me. I’ll be left not just thinking of what actions my character would take at any given moment, but instead balancing what I think they should do, what option is most different to last time, and where each decision leads, until the whole thing has the joy sapped out of it.
I could plan ahead with what I want to do next time, allowing for some non-negotiables,like meeting Shovel. But being too strict with exactly how I want to experience every little incident means the improvisation the game is best at, the way it makes you think on your feet and shows you a surprise around each corner, is taken away.
I could spend a little time writing down all the things I either want to see again or missed the first time and want to experience, and build the perfect Baldur’s Gate 3 game. But actually playing that way would never be perfect, because doing it robotically in time with a spreadsheet would make it less than the sum of its parts.
My Baldur’s Gate 3 Playthrough Was Already Perfect
Of course, maybe I don’t need to be perfect. I liked the game enough the first time, and have replayed many video games with little to no choice element to them at all. I could go back and make most of the same choices again and enjoy it as much as last time. With this approach, I’d also be free to add in the likes of Shovel, complete my gory fetch quest of Dribbles, and make some other quality of life changes (I accidentally killed Halsin the first time). But I’m not sure I want to.
I have replayedMass Effect’s andDragon Age’srespective trilogies several times in my life, making many of the same core choices but deviating here and there for variety, and kissing different people each time. But the whole Mass Effect trilogy is about the same length as one Baldur’s Gate playthrough, and I’m not sure I have the time these days to dedicate to a replay.
This is a slightly different issue than the game being too long. That’s just a mathematical fact of not being able to fit it into my schedule. But motivating myself to do it when I’m going to make the same choices all over again is different. It’s logistically possible, but not as enjoyable as the thought of it would be.
It’s Baldur’s Gate 3’s own downfall that it already feels so varied. I could shack up with a different companion and play a different class. Although, aside from Bard, I feel I experienced everything thanks to controlling my party anyway. I did everything I needed to do the first time and loved every minute of it - and boy, were there a lot of minutes.
The ideal way to get me back in would be via a major expansion, but we now knowthat won’t materialiseasLarian is moving on to pastures new. A sequel from another studio could well come, and several of the actors told us they’d be up for coming back with a decent script, but that will be years away, if it ever materialises. Maybe by then, I’ll be ready to replay Baldur’s Gate 3.
Baldur’s Gate 3
WHERE TO PLAY
Baldur’s Gate 3 is the long-awaited next chapter in the Dungeons & Dragons-based series of RPGs. Developed by Divinity creator Larian Studios, it puts you in the middle of a mind flayer invasion of Faerûn, over a century after the events of its predecessor.
