There is a nice, fun game somewhere, maybe even inside this. This one works too hard revive the Bad Old Days not just for its simulated citizens, but for the player also. It feels like mostly a truck-scheduling game at first, then becomes more of the same with other aspects. You have to do a lot of manual stuff that would be delegated in most games, and it is not the fun stuff. So, atmosphere full marks; game enjoyment, not.
Of course there are some limitations if your RPG is set in D&D 5th edition Forgotten Realms. And there are some weird non-obvious UI elements (e.g. tossing stones with mouse drag) which can be detrimental. The resting, etc. But those minor issues aside, Baldur's Gate is all that a classic-fantasy RPG with classes should be, and then some. Story, depth, scenery, characters, sensible quests, coherent logic inside the fantasy universe - and fun. I recommend BG3, especially to those annoyed by grindy repetetive MMORPG or the umpteenth remake of the well-known tropes. Yes, you'll encounter the normal classes - but the characters are well written, beyond the clichés, and there is a lot of fun content hidden beneath the obvious. Find out for yourself. Recommended. (The EULA though... even with a company as nice and sensible as Larian, there are some evil parts. And I'm not referring to the fun Eldritch bit. )
With all the praise for the content, I have to add a tiny warning: The controls are hardcoded to WASD. If you're using that anyhow, enjoy the game. If you're not, I'd say - avoid it.
Just a quick warning for potential buyers I wish I had been before: This game does not allow you any rebinding/mapping of keys, buttons, whatever. You're stuck with the controls the developers liked. And since this is not a turn-based strategy game or eagle-eye-view simulation, but one where you move a protagonist in a 3D world, smooth movement is essential. So, for me: avoid, the controls suck. But YMMV. You've been warned now.
