Larian Studio has outdone itself and its historical predecessor.
Last week, the full version of Baldur’s Gate 3 was released early on PC (the console version is a month later), ending a very long period of early access. Since I really like Dungeons and Dragons (both digital and social), I decided to wait until the full release to play it.
Dungeons & Dragons is back!
Larian Studios has been mostly known for the two Divinity: Original Sin games in recent years, and given their undeniable quality, I was thrilled to report that they had finally gotten the green light to make a sequel to what has become a truly legendary RPG series. Very few people in my gaming circle hadn’t played a Baldur’s Gate game, and apparently most of them are currently fighting to save the Sword Coast. Expectations were high. I was hoping for the best RPG of the decade, at least in the Western RPG style, and, barring a few minor issues, I got more than that.
BG3 is based on the fifth edition of Dungeons and Dragons, but with some balance changes. It is a role-playing game based on the famous Dragon’s Lair, a social role-playing game in a fantasy world with a varied plot, many books, heroes and several film adaptations (one that we are trying to forget and another that we hope to continue). Unfortunately, the fifth edition of DnD is not one of the most balanced, and some character builds are extremely strong in combat. Of course, this does not mean that you should have them in your group. On the contrary – the party can be assembled in any way, and more or less except for who can reliably open locked doors and chests, I think it does not matter much what you choose as party members or as your own avatar.
Unique characters and well-thought-out gameplay principles
Luckily, the Origin characters mentioned throughout are quite diverse, and the ability to completely overhaul for 100 gold can come in handy. I chose my avatar, but the rest of the party was filled with Origin characters. Most of these characters have really interesting stories, histories, and surprisingly good dubbing. Personally, I was most impressed by the storylines of Shadowheart and Astarion, but with one exception, the rest of them hold a high bar as well. Due to the non-combat interactions and their importance – if you decide to solve problems without combat – it makes sense to have a balanced party even on these fields, otherwise you are unlikely to find a secret switch in the wall with a two-handed sword, and you will not convince anyone of anything with the charisma of a wind-blown boulder.
Combat in BG3 is pretty much what I expected, it sticks to the DnD system and that’s why I was happy with it. Each character is limited in the number of actions and bonus actions, as well as movement. Otherwise, it’s the classic turn-based principle that you’ll be familiar with from many other games. But detail finally really matters here, and properly built and equipped characters are mostly effective and still fun killing machines by the end of the game. The right item or combination of items can change the strength of a given character dramatically, and items that improve your non-combat abilities, such as lying, threats and many other character traits, also play an important role. All this really contributes to an unprecedented level of immersion in the game world.
Your own adventure in a wonderful world
But what Larian has mastered, for sure, is the main storyline and the absolutely insane amount of options to play through it. I have yet to come across a single RPG that even comes close to the freedom that BG3 offers you. The number of solutions to any problem is truly enormous, and what’s even crazier is that despite such massive branching and variety, there is a lot in the game and, with the exception of a few glitches (sometimes you just come up with a solution to a problem that the developers really didn’t expect), everything fits together smoothly, like individual pieces of a puzzle.
The music side is also worth mentioning, and besides the traditional epic melodies or dark and nostalgic songs that perfectly emphasize the atmosphere, the game managed to surprise me and make me stare at the monitor with my mouth open – during one of the best fights. , he released a song that emphasized the entire fight and made it an unforgettable gaming experience. Graphically, the game is really beautiful, and throughout the entire game I did not encounter any technical errors or problems. The world looks alive, and combined with the freedom of interaction and decision-making, it is really easy to feel at home here. Of the minuses: some really extreme choices that the game forces you to make towards the end freeze, and maybe the lack of switching floors (orientation in multi-story buildings is sometimes a bit problematic), but other than that, I have no complaints about the game.
The new king of the genre
In the end, I have to say that for me personally, BG3 is definitely a hot contender for Game of the Year and probably the best classic (Western) RPG I’ve ever played. There are many memorable moments in the game that I hate to talk about, but I’m pretty sure they’ll be talked about for years to come. Larian has created a game that will set the standard for all RPGs in the coming years, and I hope we see another game from them in this world soon (please, Icewind Dale 3). Before that happens, my less than ninety hours in this part of the Forgotten Realms certainly won’t be exhaustive, and I plan to return to this gem of a game at least one more time.
Source :Indian TV
