Baldur’s Gate 3 is looking increasingly likely, thanks to a teaser on Larian Studios’ website. The developer of Divinity: Original Sin 2 (as well as, well, older Divinity games) has replaced its usual site with a big, smokey image that shows the Roman numeral III. Dig into the page source a bit, however, and it’s easy to find reference to Baldur’s Gate 3.
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The original Baldur’s Gate was an early, breakout RPG for then-fresh developer Bioware (maker of Mass Effect and Dragon Age). It was followed by a direct sequel, Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn, as well as scads of expansions, re-releases, and ports. The series holds a special place in many PC players’ hearts. Though it’s been somewhat quiet for close to 20 years.
That appears to finally be changing. Larian Studios is a driving force in a recent renaissance of old school computer RPGs. Its most recent game, Divinity: Original Sin 2, was lauded for its unique playable characters and immense freedom of choice. Both are elements that would feel right at home in the world of Baldur’s Gate.
Baldur’s Gate 3 Potential Leak and Reveal
Speaking of which, the page source on the website also mentions Wizards of the Coast — purveyors of Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons. Baldur’s Gate is actually just one corner of the Forgotten Realms setting: itself a subsection of the D&D brand.
Dungeons and Dragons dominated computer RPGs in the early 2000s, with games like Icewind Dale and Planescape: Torment joining Baldur’s Gate as revered classics. Whereas the aforementioned genre resurgence has largely occurred in new, original universes (like Obsidian Entertainment’s Pillars of Eternity). Between this and MTG: Arena, it’s interesting to see Wizards of the Coast leveraging its most iconic brands among video games once again.
Sadly, there isn’t much more to glean from the Larian website. There’s no hint to a Baldur’s Gate 3 release date, or much more behind the potential game’s name and logo (which you can see above). The video file on the page does urge players to “GATHER YOUR PARTY.” That seems to imply that the game really will lean on Larian’s previous strengths: interesting characters in a fantastical world. Though Baldur’s Gate is typically a lot less whimsical than Divinity: Original Sin 2 and its predecessors.
Our Take:
I missed the boat on Baldur’s Gate and its sequel back in the day. Knights of the Old Republic was my first foray into the world of Bioware RPGs, so I don’t quite have the nostalgia that would make Baldur’s Gate 3 really stand out. That being said, with the future of Bioware feeling more uncertain than ever, and Larian Studios’ involvement seeming like a done deal, I’ll hardly turn down a fresh take on the iconic CRPG.
Of course, if you’d like to brush up on your Baldur’s Gate lore, you can still buy the first two games and their expansions. Both Baldur’s Gate and Baldur’s Gate 2 received HD remakes in the form of “enhanced editions,” available on Steam and GOG. The first game even inexplicably received an expansion, Baldur’s Gate: Siege of Dragonspear, as recently as 2016. That just goes to show the lasting legacy of the series and its popularity among RPG fans.
