Time will tell but so my vote is: tremendously entertaining game that doesn't feel like BG yet. Not yet sure if I'm in the "not BG3 but I'm okay with it" or "this is proof that it should have been called "Baldur's Gate: Rise of the Absolute" camp. I largely agree with what @nicotta @robertthebard @svig and @ambits have said.
The good:
Writing: So far the stories of Wyll and Shadowheart are grabbing me. Gale is annoying as crap but he's also well written -- every BG game needs an Anomen it seems.
The tadpole is good substitute for the Bhaal powers and in some way better done that the Bhaal powers. The cambion is a good substitute for the deal with the shadow thieves.
Mechanics: put me as a big fan of the dice roll. Fond memories of hoping that I would actually make that savings throw, nice to see my proficiencies count! Some core rules -- like the ability to see in dark are better implemented in BG3 than they were in the other games. In BG, infravision was a wasted spell. Now I have a use for low light vision and my human is paying the price for those stat buffs.
The bad:
The origin characters overshadow me. The "ahh I'm back in the underdark" for my drow character isn't enough. Like PoE1 my background should count. The character creator also needs an expanded background creator. Why is a former chosen of god, a priest on a holy mission and a hero of the sword coast following my lead? In BG, the older, more experienced Jaheria deferred to me because I had a divine destiny. The former chosen defers to me -- why, exactly?
The game, so far, is Larian linear. Just like there were multiple ways to get into the dungeons and out of Fort Joy, so there are multiple ways to get to moonrise towers. Branching paths but all roads lead to Rome. What's missing is the BG1 / BG2 - chapter 2 / PoE2 open world experience. Let's hope that changes when we get to Baldur's Gate. I want that BG1 experience of walking into a random home and getting a quest. Lots and lots of quests.
The BG series had a higher replay value than any other game to date and
(this was also a failure of PoE1 -- the quests didn't open up until you took the keep, until then it Obsidian linear. Again, multiple paths all leading to Rome)
4 party members. Bad decision. Needs to be 6.
Undecided
Waiting to see if you can put together a heroic party. I want to save the save the sword coast from a costly war with Amn. I want to put an end to destructive beholder cult. I want to kick butt for goodness. I liked saving the lives of the kids in the grove but I also saved the lives of murderous asshats who wanted to build that wall (of thorns) and so the victory feels a bit mixed. I get my realpolitik fix from the news, in fantasy I want to play the hero's quest. Preferably heroism mixed with a dash of ironic humor -- "Fear not! I will inspire you all by charging blindly on!"
