Baldur’s Gate 3: Making Waves in theAAA Gaming Space

By Gaming Editor Bonny Murphy

Many who follow role-playing games (RPG’s) and Dungeons and Dragons communities could see the arrival of a collaborative Dungeons and Dragons RPG on the horizon for some time now. The intense rise in popularity of Dungeons and Dragons following the success of groups such as Critical Role and Dimension 20, brought new calls for an immersive RPG to be based in the table-top game’s rule system. Furthermore, the release of the recent film Dungeons and Dragons: Honour Among Thieves in late March of 2023 bolstered validation that Dungeons and Dragons deserved time in the adaptation spotlight. The above climate is, in part, why Larian Studio’s Baldur’s Gate 3 has been a spectacular success in the AAA gaming space. However, this success has come with returning blows from other AAA game developers who have indicated that Baldur’s Gate 3 should not be an expected standard for the space moving forward. Needless to say, these remarks have been taken with disappointment from fans and/or customers whose increasing frustration at the market is reaching its limit. 

So, for those who may be unfamiliar, what is Baldur’s Gate 3 all about? The game is a narrative focused, party-based RPG placed in the plentiful universe of Dungeons and Dragons. Players may choose to play single player, in which they control all members of a larger party of adventurers or play with friends who each control their own individual character. A party of adventurers on a quest, simply put, Dungeons and Dragons, the videogame. Like Dungeons and Dragons, the narrative is rich, and the role-play and combat choices are endless, though come with consequences. Players can shape their playthroughs of the game to unique experiences, never to be played the same way twice. In regard to Baldur’s Gate 3’s performance, Steam Charts has the game’s all-time peak of players at 875,343. Steam itself boasts overwhelming positive reviews for the game in both the recent and all review categories. Furthermore, the game allows for both online and offline play, however in offline play multiplayer is not possible alongside other online events. Most players familiar with Dungeons and Dragons will be quick to use the character creation option to create their own character in whatever, often unhinged, form that takes. Though for players who have no idea what dragons or dungeons I have been referring to, the game allows for you to choose from a wide pool of preexisting characters. The expansive nature of the game and the added benefit of its association with Dungeons and Dragons, makes it a formidable contender in the AAA gaming space.

Now for the drama. Whilst most customers, gamers and fans praised the release of such a complex, expansive, and endlessly enjoyable RPG not all felt this way. The Creative Director of the game development company Strange Scaffold, Xalavier Nelson Jr. took to Twitter (or X, should you endorse X), to state some concerns. In his opening tweet he notes that while happy for Larian Studios and their success, “I want to gently, pre-emptively push back against players taking that excitement and using it to apply criticism or a ‘raised standard’ to RPGs going forward”. This tweet prompted a lengthy discussion on Twitter, including many game developers in the AAA gaming space. Developer, James Berg, Xbox’s Senior Technical Program Manager for Accessibility, had this to add to the conversation; “I would not be surprised if this was more dev effort than the next 2 or 3 games in the genre combined. It’s Rockstar-level nonsense for scope. Only a few studio groups could even try this. I cannot wait to play, but this kind of effort likely won’t be replicated this decade.” A strong response peppered with some excitement for a game that Berg claims will not be seen for another 10 years. Another developer, Ryan McCabe, Design Manager at Insomniac Games commented, “This is a great thread about why using a singular game to set expectations for everyone developing titles in a genre isn’t useful and is instead foolhardy.” Much to unpack here which many on Twitter providing severe backlash to these claims. Even IGN, who have been criticised in the past for their soft approach to AAA game developers, weighed in with a highly critical video on this Twitter discussion. 

So why are these claims so wrong and silly? To be fair to Xalavier Nelson Jr. there may be some small validity to his criticisms. He notes, “The license, brand, and world of one of the largest entertainment IPs in the world (D&D), at the apex of its popularity with the rise of actual play, and a movie”. Not all games have this unique climate to enter into. However, many games such as World of Warcraft, Destiny 2, and Diablo to list a few, all have long established lore and are in of themselves, strong IPs. Another comment of Xalavier regards Larian Studio’s “Over 400 developers in 7 different offices around the world”. This comment disregards the thousands of employees many large gaming studios have across the globe, also. The most egregious comment was from Ryan McCabe stating criticism of other games based on a new, better game being “foolhardy”. Though gamers consider themselves many things, fans, competitive gamers, casual players, we are all customers. The AAA gaming space is a market of collaboration and competition. It is a pity the reaction from developers was not to see Baldur’s Gate 3 and think what they could provide consumers and fans with to gain such praise and positive engagement. Instead, the Twitter conversation exposed the fear Baldur’s Gate 3 had put into AAA gaming developers, as now, whether they liked it or not, they are being raised to a higher standard. 

Some of this backlash to the AAA developer reaction to Baldur’s Gate 3’s success may be explained by the anger and frustration already existing within customers. There are many examples of AAA game studios disappointing fans on the basis of decisions seemingly motivated by financial gain over player satisfaction and accessibility. A recent example of such a decision comes from huge game developer Rockstar Games. Red Dead Redemption and its sequel are beloved titles of Rockstar which have garnered them huge praise for their innovation in gaming. However, their relationship with customers has been strained due to a decision to release Red Dead Redemption on PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch, previously unplayable on these platforms due to the games age (released 2010). Sounds good right? Well, the catch is simple, the game is not going to be remastered or remade to fit the modern standards players hoped it would. On top of that it comes with a hefty price tag of €49.99. This is just shy of the sequel’s price of €59.99 on steam, which is an updated and better maintained game having been released in 2018. This clearly rubbed fans the wrong way, as they had the hopes of a remaster or remake at the bare minimum. The blatant cash grab from the AAA gaming developers comes across as disingenuous and greedy. 

Larian Studios has distinguished Baldur’s Gate 3 from this greedy reputation by standing hard on the hill of no microtransactions. On the website for Baldur’s Gate 3 you will find nestled in the FAQ section the refreshing statement,” No, there are no in-game purchases in our game. We believe in providing a complete and immersive gaming experience without the need for additional purchases. Enjoy the game to its fullest without any additional costs or microtransactions”. This statement alone shows a critical way Baldur’s Gate 3 is scaring current AAA developers. They have proved that you can make a successful game with no microtransactions and maximum player satisfaction.

The vital message from developers seems to be a pleading cry to buy their games, expansions, conversions, microtransactions and much more while making clear they are not capable of improving their games. Baldur’s Gate 3 did set a new standard of AAA games and if the rest of the market does not react, customers may move elsewhere. Often due to the relaxed language around the new industry of gaming fans and developers have relatively informal relations. This can provide transparency and a sense of realness to those behind the best games of this decade. But it can also create a lax attitude towards player concerns. Always remember that you are a fan AND a paying customer. You deserve the best product for your money.