Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General Suggestion: Making BG fans love BG3

Hey guys,

Here's a suggestion to have BG fans love BG3. And I'm actually going to suggest something coming from (GASP) Dragon Age Inquisition.

Why don't you allow the possibility to import a BG2 save file into BG3 to carry over some of the narrative choices? For example, if the BG2 protagonist was a half-orc mage. It would be great if there would be some dialogue or other text referencing this in BG3. It could be really simple fluff like this that would really make the BG1/2 fans go "Wow, they thought of this x detail from my beloved game". I honestly wouldn't even go overboard with this (Locking content behind a save import file or other crazy things like that), as it's really all about evoking nostalgia.

And if it's not possible to import a BG2 save file, the tapestry option from DA Inquisition to import choices from BG2 could also really work. Even if it's a smaller more redundant version of it.

I think many of the negative impressions so far have been really about wanting and deliberately searching for that sense of nostalgia. Feeling like coming back home. Providing an import save file feature would directly address this.

It would be cool but from what I can tell the game is a departure from the old titles and being marketed to a new audience.

Honestly, if that were the case than the game wouldn't be called BG3. As that would inevitably have people wondering (and perhaps even buying/playing) BG1/2.

It's also how you market a feature. It doesn't have to be heavily marketed, and not displayed as an option very visibly in the character creation menu. And I think an 80/20 implementation would make many people happy.

Well there are trying to get old players who have played BG1 and BG2 but there also wanting new players to get into BG3

That's why limiting the exposure of the feature could be a good idea. So it's not universally marketed as a feature (advertisement), but marketed directly for BG fans (interviews, ama QA etc).

I remember Wizardry 8 did something similar, where you could import the save file of Wizardry 7, at the time a 10 year old game. It also didn't change much, but people loved it.

Well from what I understand about BG3 there are going by the lore of the books not the games

I never really like it when games have references to choices from previous games.

I'm playing POE2 right now, never played the first one, keep getting references and dialog options for stuff i've never done and people i've never met, breaks immersion quite a lot honestly.

Good idea for people who have played the former games (and recently enough to remember everything), sucky idea for anyone new to the 'series' or that doesn't remember these references that glaring obvious as references..

Do we really have to be so black and white. All I'm saying is the game can be welcoming to both audiences. Instead of just discarding all suggestions that could help some people over the edge?

I'm not suggesting the game be rebuilt from scratch, just add some fluff that really pulls those nostalgia strings.

Disagree with this entirely. The references usually entice me to visit the predecessor and give that game a try after completion. And usually of the references are so in your face, it means they weren't integrated well enough.

Also, according to the Reddit AMA. BG3 would directly tap into BG1/2 for its story.
https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...-leads-to-what-happens-in-baldurs-gate-3

I thought the questionnaire thing in Dragon Age: Inquisiton was quite the eloquent solution. Both new players and returning players could do it, and at least for me, that would be much more convenient than trying to find my Baldur's Gate saves (They probably still exist somewhere... Just not sure where). Also less of a nightmare for the developers than digging into the code of and trying to make sense of a game they didn't develop themselves.

Don't have any issue with the game referencing events and characters of previous games, because it will be a part of exploring this game and world.

It's when you get, dialogue options like this:

Random NPC you just met "Just like when we raided the circle mage college eh PC"

1) I remember we stole the circle mage's circlet, what a laugh that was
2) I find it hard to recall
3) I say nothing.

I just get pulled out of the conversation, such a tacky way to make a reference about something that the developer hopes you remember choosing to do, even if quite possibly your audience didn't play the game.

I don't think that is possible due to the different engines in which the games were made. But listing choices from BG2 during character creation is viable.

Yes, I also thought the DA:I tapestry idea would be a good way to go. Provide a cannon default set of choices, but allow you to change a limited number of aspects of the history.

Not that there will be too many direct references, because this is not a direct story continuation. I suppose a direct BG3 follow on might have been the Second Sundering and resurrection of Bhaal, but that would likely mean the oblliteration of your original character, which doesn't seem quite what one might want!

I'm thinking that this will be more like the way Mask of the Betrayer referenced and used characters from the NWN2 main campaign, and that could certainly be tweaked the way DA:I chose to do it.

BG3 takes the D&D lore as canon. So, the main character of BG1 and 2 was this guy: https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Abdel_Adrian and not whatever you played. Mixing up the two would make a mess IMO. Even BG2 ignores all choices you made in BG1. You are assumed to have have Minsc, Jaheira, Khalid, Imoen etc. in your party.

I'd rather them just use the characters we know and love from the original games, not the choices we made. Doesn't that give you enough nostalgia and a nod to the first games of the series?

@OP: Sorry, but this does not make any sense.

- The main character of BG3 is NOT the main character of BG1+2.
- What choice do you want to import? BG1+2 had only 1 ending, not sure about the different options at the end of ToB.
- What about meeting the hero of BG1+2? Its 100 years later, so depending on the race (s)he may be alive or not. Imagine a player complaining: "Oh no, I miss a cool quest because 20 years ago I chose a half orc as main char and not an elf."
- Even if you import the main char with all equipment, (s)he will look totally different than you think because now its 20 years later and we have a totally different graphic. So even an image makes no sense, unless you see an image in the style of BG2.

If anything, there may be some references that 100 years ago a race/gender/class did this and that.