The reality is, BG3 is too large of a project for them to purely prioritize a "perfect CRPG experience"
Given the budget of the game, they'll need to appeal to an equally large audience to make this work. Roughly guessing, the audience breakdown:
- CRPG Enthusiasts (including original BG1/2 players)
- 5E Table Top Enthusiasts who might try a videogame
- Returning DOS 2 Players
- More "mainstream" RPG players (Witcher 3, Mass Effect, Fallout 4, Skyrim players)
I'd argue that the last 2 are likely the biggest markets/opportunities, hence the focus on cinematics. There's a reason why they've made so many adjustments to the rules too (instead of just applying them as written, which is FAR easier and simpler). Hence why you see surface areas, etc.
Does this mean the game is better for it? Not necessarily, but I do understand the business decision behind a lot of their choices.
Pretty much this.
I actually am not too fond of everything being cinematics either, it does make sense with a lot of interactions tho.
But it's the same with voice acting, I think that voice acting does change the writing and simplify it more because voice actors have to voice so much ( remember that things aren't just done in a single take ). I prefer it if it's not voiced and the dialogue is more extensive and I like to just read things as I imagine it in my own head both with descriptions and characters.
Especially with protagonists, I feel like the voice acting usually contradicts how I imagine my own character and is very limiting.
And don't get me started on the dreaded dialogue wheel popularized by Bioware lol.
With that said tho, it does make sense from a mass market appeal pov.
I also think that people need to remember also that DnD as in the tabletop is extremely niche.
There was an uptick in interest because of Critical Role but there's a difference between watching celebrities play DnD with super high production value etc and actually playing it yourself, most people just tried it and were all like '' wait a minute, this is just a game for math nerds '' and got bored real fast.
The actual tabletop game itself is never going to be mainstream, even if interest in the lore itself may increase.
When it comes to video games it's easier to reach a mass market but you also do have to sacrifice a lot of the tabletop elements.
I do understand purists being disappointed about it, I hate a lot of the trends in video games and the obsession with '' mainstream appeal ''. I do think that it compromises the art and makes for less diverse games but from a business standpoint it does make sense.
