Baldur’s Gate 3 was released on August 3rd to overwhelming praise and universal acclaim. In addition to the critical response that has been very positive, the game holds the place of the best-selling game on Steam. Despite Larian’s concerns about early access affecting sales, the game has gone above and beyond their expectation by selling 2.5 million copies on PC. However, not everyone is celebrating Larian’s success. Game developers have been coming out to address unrealistic expectations that Baldur’s Gate is making. But, what about Baldur’s Gate 3 is creating unrealistic expectations?
Experience with Baldur’s Gate
Before we get into the controversies in the game industry, let’s address why Baldur’s Gate has done exceptionally well based on my personal experience with the game. To be honest, I didn’t buy the game when it first came out. After all, recent titles like Pokemon and Cyberpunk 2077 have made me jaded from playing games. However, the persistence of my DND friends pushed me to try the game.
Despite all my reservations, Baldur’s Gate 3 has gone above my expectations. This game is a complete story with DLC or microtransactions like current AAA titles. Every inch of the world is full of discoveries and unique interactions depending on your player character. Moreover, there are no game-breaking bugs that prevent you from playing to completion. Also, the multi-player option allows you to explore with your friends. Without a doubt, this is one of the best games that I have played in years in terms of story, structure, and game performance. As an avid gamer, Baldur’s Gate was a fresh of breath air. So, why are game developers criticizing its success?
Criticism from Game Developers
You would think game developers would be promoting the success of other developers. However, that has not been the case with Baldur’s Gate 3. Soon after the success of the game was clear, some game developers came out to try to lower the expectations of gamers. A famous Twitter thread by an indie developer Xalavier Nelson Jr., ended up sparking a debate by saying that Baldur’s Gate 3 “… is not a new baseline for RPGs—this is an anomaly.”
However, the post ended up reinforcing the idea that gamers should not have high expectations for AAA titles that have been constantly failing and even showing their exploitative sides. People’s reaction to this post shows the amount of frustration feel towards the current state of the gaming industry. Many games are released in buggy, broken states or rely on predatory microtransactions while asking people to pay for them. Meanwhile, Baldur’s Gate 3 was released without any bugs and no microtransaction system. Instead, you just pay for the game and get to experience it in its entirety.
So, is it any surprise that people are claiming Baldur’s Gate should establish a new standard for AAA developers? If anything, the standards for major game development companies need to be raised because consumers are being sold games that are broken on arrival.
If you have not had a chance, you should buy Baldur’s Gate 3 and try it for yourself. You won’t be disappointed. I am looking forward to more games from Larian’s game developers.