And in my case it's even worse for me because I cannot abide including Jaheira and Minsc in my party, not only because they're boring retreads but also because by rights they should be level 20 characters and I won't be able to suspend my disbelief of them being level 1 characters.
to be completely fair I think by the time we actually meet Jaheira and Minsc in game, if non-met companions still gain xp like they do in EA, they will probably already be at least level 5/6, just based on how much experience you can get in Act 1 without leaving this part of the Sword Coast. In terms of actual gameplay, it would be kinda lame if one of your companions had their entire kit leveled up before you even met them. They might as well just be NPCs at that point.
You never know though, maybe they will be a higher level and have their own experience (we already know the game tracks companions' experience separately, which causes them all to level up at different times), and maybe the game will just let us customise each level-up retroactively.
