Baldur's Gate 3

Even at this early stage, it's clear that this will be a well made, fun RPG when it's finished. However, I still feel like it should have been titled something else, as even though it contains references to the previous BG games, it doesn't have the same style or "feel" as those games. They should go with something like Baldur's Gate: , as the Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance did. That'd alleviate 90% of the complaints from fans of the previous games I think. As a long time fan of both the Infinity Engine games and the Divinity games, I feel this game is a fun blend of both, but the merger does have flaws. Most notably, too many deviations from D&D 5th edition (often for no good reason). But this is Early Access, so some of these may be changes just to see what people do with them, and hopefully the feedback they are getting will fix many of these issues. On the subject of turn based combat, I think it works fine and I have no issue with its inclusion in the game. It's how tabletop works, and so I think it's a good thing it has been translated well into the game. A major point of contention currently is the "surfaces" and how prevalent they are, and changes made to spells and abilities to work with the system. I like the surfaces and some of the associated mechanics, but I think Larian could have merged them with D&D better. For example, Firebolt should be single target with it's standard stats by default. But I'm fine with it igniting a "Grease" surface if I directly target that surface instead of targetting an enemy and so on. So to sum up: the game has potential, it's already engaging and I will revisit this review as the EA progresses.

There have been a lot of reviews that claim this isn't a Baldur's Gate game. They are right, this isn't. It's Divinity:Original Sin in semi-Faerun clothing. Yes, this is still in early access, but it shouldn't even be there yet. There are a lot of fundamental issues with this game, from a lack of map rotation during exploration to gigantic balance issues during the first combats to a UI that is clumsy, awkward, and not at all intuitive to use if you aren't already a D:OS player. The 5th Edition D&D rules are implemented in what feels like a very lackadaisical fashion, where they aren't implemented in a ham-handed fashion. There is still an awful lot of work that needs to be done before this game is anything close to fun to play.

This game is garbage compared to the REAL Baldur's Gates or the magnificent Pillars of Eternity series. BG3 shouldn't carry the name it does, because it is NOT a Baldur's Gate game in style or tone. This game makes you help people you don't WANT to help. It makes you run around with party members that hate your guts. You will find no Imoen or Edér here, nothing like them at all. The companions are unpleasant and annoying. The combat is bad, because it drags on way too long and the animations look silly. Reloading a long fight feels even more like a chore than doing the dishes. Your party isn't a cohesive whole, greater than the sum of its parts. Rather it's a bunch of awkward looking clowns moving around slowwwly and killing things even sloowwwwer. The enemies you fight are entirely forgettable. I thought that Divinity Original Sin 2 was an unenjoyable clunker of a game, but at least it had its own charm and the game felt complete and rich. Baldur's Gate 3 borrows from Divinity, borrows from BG and ends up a weak freaky mismatch of ideas. This Early Access stuff is also an affront and needs to end.

I like most about the game, but it just isn't like the classic games that founded the genre. There are some modern advancements, mixed with lack of QoL and refinement. An example is very slow combat encounters that could require a reload, causing a loss of time upwards of an hour or even more. Writing is pretty high level compared to others in the space, though not without flaw; but where role playing is a concern, it manages to fumble in a few areas. For this I will give another example: In act 1, I convinced a druid to put a teifling child in prison for a short time after she stole an artifact. The teifling then attempted to run and got killed somewhat by accident by the carelessness of the druid and her pet viper. Later at the final stage before heading to act 2, the child's mother attempts to murder the druid for revenge, so I convince her to spare her life—at which point I break my oath as a paladin. This made little sense to me, and I understand the developers wanting to leave out a alignment system to streamline; though I think it was not for the better. The point in an alignment system in the first place was to allow the player some flexibility in choice, while forcing them to favor a more focused playstyle at the same time. In Baldur's Gate 3, all choices a hard set to result in specific consequences. Camp is also a very unsatisfying and simplistic system that offers very little challenge in managing your spells and abilities; and I would like to also point out the romance in the game—as it is quality, it also doesn't feel natural or earned. And unfortunately it is the only thing you really have to do in camp. So in conclusion, I like many parts of the game, but it doesn't really scratch that itch for a Baldur's Gate/Pathfinder/PoE experience. So as a triple A title, it manages a great deal of quality content, but as per usual, it doesn't reach beyond the everyday casual gamer.

If you liked DOS1 & 2 then this will be up your alley. I feel it falls short of a D&D game from the perspective of a long-time tabletop player. Big thing that got me early on is how the Origin Story and other character creator elements become an impediment to building the character I wanted. For instance, in Pathfinder: Kingmaker I could create an undead bloodline sorcerer with skills in persuasion and perception and nothing allocated in arcana knowledge. In BG3 I see no way to choose perception and persuasion at creation time. Is this a deal breaker? If you want to build a character that is uniquely yours, yes. That character will surely have issues since they have an embarrassing lack of arcane knowledge, but that is what makes the character unique and a challenge to play. Perhaps this will change in later iterations, but I would love to see a no background option for experienced players. The other issue is Larian’s obsession with elemental effects. It set DoS 1 & DoS2 apart from their competition, but the entire “environmental effects are cool” idea is true only when used sparingly. Not DoS2 by any means, you will encounter them enough that it is a common occurrence. I hated the entire idea so I would like a lot less of this, your mileage may vary. The major positives: the story invokes a real sense of urgency. It is hard to do side quests and explore the environment due to the fear that you will become a monster at any moment. The sense of existential dread just oozes from the game. After a few hours in you will begin to lose trust in many of the NPC's that claim they can help you and even your own teammates. I really liked how they set such a dark tone for the story. If you can live with that, then the good points justify the price and early access. My hope is that the later incarnations of the game let you have more flexibility when crafting a character that long time RPG affectionados want.