Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Latest News Community Update #24: Looking To The Future

I’d take statements that there are attempts to eventually fix or improve the game over the radio silence and abandonment most AAA devs give. I’m confident the definitive edition will be a marked improvement over the initial release, and that it will incorporate a modicum of player feedback, even if the current version shipped with significant flaws. They’re not perfect at all, but at least we will get something eventually, rather than nothing ever from other major studios. I’m glad they don’t leave fixing game breaking bugs up to modders unlike another certain company.

Regarding bugs, I'm glad Larian's addressing them.

That said, I'm curious about the quality of the playtesters used. I feel like Larian could have saved themselves an enormous headache by hiring a few of the folks on this forum to playtest the game. A lot of these bugs would have been found quickly.

I don't really bother reporting anything unless it's game breaking or painfully annoying. Some small things I just shrug off. Like the dead drow on the table with Nettie. In the cut scene, he's in his underwear. In the game, he's wearing pants, and if you use Speak with Dead on him, he's also wearing pants. Little things like that feel like oversights.

There are rare typos scattered about. I don't know if anyone bothers reporting those.

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Regarding communication, I'm happy Larian is communicating.

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Regarding content, something like the upper city should have been included. It's a big part of the titular city, which should feel like a character in and of itself.

The flavor of the city ends up feeling watered down. I don't feel the oncoming threat of the absolute army. I don't feel the grip of fear that comes with knowing murderers are on the loose. I don't feel the burning divide over the refugees. And I don't feel anything at all from the upper city.

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Regarding Karlach, I don't really understand her, unfortunately. It seems some folks like her, but don't feel totally satisfied at the end with her. That's fair criticism, I suppose.

I wonder if that missing satisfaction might be coming from the way she's written?

For instance, she has this deeply tragic background. She has this burning anger within her. But *none* of that shows in her personality. So, while all of that is *supposed* to be part of her story, none of it comes across for the player. Instead, she's all happy to be alive and good natured as can be.

Things don't really work that way. Karlach should be scarred inside and out. Broken in many ways. Her arc should be learning how to live again, how to be normal again. The tragedy of what happened to her should be felt.

But instead, it's not. People see this happy character, full of sunshine and rainbows, and subsequently, they expect a happy sunshine ending.

She feels more like a writer's personal fantasy self-insertion than she does a real character, I'm sorry to say. (I love the writing of almost all the other characters. Karlach's feels *very* different to me.)

The problem with Karlach is that her quest stopps after Act 2 and is unfinished. Every origin character has their quest continued and finished in Act 3, except for Karlach. And because of that, her story ends in tragedy and it feels like it's the players' fault for not trying hard enough.

I'm not against a tragic ending for her, but I do want a finished questline in Act 3 and I want the world to be internally consistent. In the forgotten realms there is such a thing as a wish spell or true resurrection. The game needs to address why these things don't work.

Can you please just fix the post about patch 2 notes for starters

Based on interviews and the art book, Larian didn't really know which direction to take Karlach. Apparently, she went through three significant versions. The aristocratic sharpshooter version who people through was an EA placeholder, the "Cool Karlach" who was a bit grimmer and tougher, and then the one we got, who was apparently pretty much based on the voice actress' charisma and delivery. Class-wise, they did not know whether she'd be a rogue (first version), sorcerer, paladin, or barbarian. Additionally, the general... oddities of the infernal engine idea (is it in her body, easily removed, why don't we ever see it? the cutscenes feel like something from 2010) make it clear it was a pretty late development. I think the voice actress has said she had no idea what the infernal engine was or that Karlach's chest was basically glowing.

I'd like to be able to make a custom party in future. This would greatly add to replayability.

Why there is no info regarding Mac release? Previously Larian stated bg3 Mac release will be with ps launch. Then they said something about „early September“. Now no info at all and it’s really sad. Give us info please!

I’m very sad that Larian PR is throwing their developers under the bus.

It feels like a complete lie saying that this is the way the developers wanted the game to release.

Especially with the huge number of bug and performance fixes these devs have needed to release in the first month. Bless them for working so hard, it’s obvious they’re having to scramble to make up for a business decision.

I would respect it a lot more if PR admitted there were business considerations in releasing the game when they did.

That’s normal, so I don’t get why they’re blaming the developers for the broken state of the story and game:


It’s clear these wonderfully talented devs are working with/against a need to make money and be profitable as a product/business.

That’s normal, so I don’t get why Larian is hiding it.

Honestly I’m not upset about the things they had to cut during the development process, it’s just the fact that there are so many clear last-minute amputations in the game that didn’t have time to heal, and Larian PR is trying to tell us this is what these gifted artists wanted to give us?

Adding the fact that you said that the Upper City was intended to be epic and having an amazing cinetamtic, it's a shame that wasn't added for the official release.

Personal opinion, what made the game such a wonderful experience for me were the cutscenes. I even found myself more intrigued and playing the companion quests rather than trying to reach the ending of the game.
Exploration, improving your characters' relationship with the group, intriguing side quests,etc were one of the few things that made the game such an immersive experience (thank you adding Karlach a good ending in the near future).

But if the team is worried the cinematics would be too long, you could add a button to skip them, maybe?

I have reached the ending with around 142hs into the game. And not only the final scene felt truly lacking but also the amount out scenes with the group/companion(s) as well.
I hope you are not afraid to add more scenes + improve the epilogue, and if we can have a sneak peak of the Upper City as well, it would be wonderful.

Here it comes!


No seriously, we need a hard priority for game mechanics and QoL features, people have been lurking here for a while and Crimson has listed some of them.


Larian could pacify a lot more dissatisfied players at once with this.

DU / Minthara path players still get literally nothing past Act 1. In the Act 1 it seems so good but then the game abandons your choices and gives you nothing compared to other playthroughs, there is no reason to keep playing it past Act 1 so it's better to just drop the game unless devs will make this path viable someday.

Hey i was wondering because of the picture in your post if u know how to fix something that happened after I deleted some mods. I keep on spawning in a place with a bunch of naked med if I try to make a new game? Do you maybe know how to fix it?? Anything helps.. I’m desperate at this point.

Steam
*Log in to your Steam account from the Steam client.
*Open your Steam Library. Click the Library tab. ...
*Right-click the appropriate game, and then click Properties. ...
*Click the Local Files tab.
*Click Verify integrity of game files. ...
*After the files are successfully validated, close the Properties window.

Or delete the game entirely: https://www.gamesradar.com/baldurs-gate-3-save-location/ Then re-install it.

Otherwise no idea. It's "Larianism" No seriously. Hands off mods. There are Hotfixes & Patches but the bugtracker grows and grows... Buggers Gate 3 is not ready for it yet.

Thank you! I really appreciate your help tho

I mostly just want my Bard being allowed to inspire himself. Thats the one oddity that really keeps bugging me about Bards. I just see no reason why they can inspire others, and with a huge buff no less, but for some reason never themselves. I dont know any other ability in D&D with such a weird limitation.

Warding Bond from Cleric for example, well that makes sense that you cant cast that on yourself. It would literally do nothing at all.

You can however Enhance Ability on yourself just fine. Paladins can Lay On Hands themselves just fine. Etc.

May I know why none of you at Larian say a word about the Mac version? Not a piece of news, not a date, nothing certain... You're not making a fool of us

Some news is here:
https://twitter.com/larianstudios/status/1699455882457981438

Still no news on the XBOX release date, I see?

This is doing immense psychic damage to me as well. I'm begging for any news on this.

I don't think they could since you already bought that Mac.