Wow. That may well have been the longest video game I've ever played in my life. Now that I'm watching the end credits scroll up, I feel like I've closed the chapter on a part of my life. It's going to be weird not playing Baldur's Gate 3 anymore.
I'll keep this review brief, because if I don't, I'll be up all night writing some lengthy treatise instead, when all I want to do is move on to the next game in my backlog and play something different! Does Baldur's Gate 3 deserve its surprise reputation as 2023's best game? After all, up until August, we all expected Tears of the Kingdom to be a shoe-in for the title. In my opinion, yes. It is a game of almost awe-inspiring scope and ambition. The amount of customisation is astonishing, as are the myriad of different narrative threads and outcomes. There are so many varying ways the story can go, and yet it always manages to be tethered by phenomenal writing, no matter dialogue option you choose. The game also serves as a reminder of how thrilling turn-based combat can be. In an industry where turn-based is seen as outdated and real-time combat is the more viable way to go in the AAA realm, Larian have nailed how gripping, brain-teasing and downright rewarding a slower method of combat is when game designers bring their A-game. I hope big publishers take notice of BG3's monumental success and maybe reconsider that not all AAA RPGs in this day and age have to play like something designed for a teenager afflicted with ADHD.
The reason I didn't give Baldur's Gate 3 a perfect score is that it felt like it was starting to come apart at the seams by Act 3. I was encountering a fair few bugs at that point. Performance was taking a dip, texture pop in kept rearing its ugly head, the inventory would lag something awful, so on and so forth. Act 3 was such a huge part of the game, and it felt like the team had maybe bit off more than it could chew with that portion of the game. As such, my playthrough did feel like it went on a bit longer than was necessary.
But I digress. For the absurd amount of hours I put into Baldur's Gate 3 and the relief I feel now that it's over, the truth is that some part of me will miss it. I put in a lot of effort to ensure I would get the best ending for everyone. And why? Ultimately because I cared. I loved my companions and truly wanted the best for them. Hence why I did every side quest that was available to me, obsessed over passing ability checks and scoured every square inch of the maps. And when you're that invested in the events of a video game... what higher praise can you offer?
I'll keep this review brief, because if I don't, I'll be up all night writing some lengthy treatise instead, when all I want to do is move on to the next game in my backlog and play something different! Does Baldur's Gate 3 deserve its surprise reputation as 2023's best game? After all, up until August, we all expected Tears of the Kingdom to be a shoe-in for the title. In my opinion, yes. It is a game of almost awe-inspiring scope and ambition. The amount of customisation is astonishing, as are the myriad of different narrative threads and outcomes. There are so many varying ways the story can go, and yet it always manages to be tethered by phenomenal writing, no matter dialogue option you choose. The game also serves as a reminder of how thrilling turn-based combat can be. In an industry where turn-based is seen as outdated and real-time combat is the more viable way to go in the AAA realm, Larian have nailed how gripping, brain-teasing and downright rewarding a slower method of combat is when game designers bring their A-game. I hope big publishers take notice of BG3's monumental success and maybe reconsider that not all AAA RPGs in this day and age have to play like something designed for a teenager afflicted with ADHD.
The reason I didn't give Baldur's Gate 3 a perfect score is that it felt like it was starting to come apart at the seams by Act 3. I was encountering a fair few bugs at that point. Performance was taking a dip, texture pop in kept rearing its ugly head, the inventory would lag something awful, so on and so forth. Act 3 was such a huge part of the game, and it felt like the team had maybe bit off more than it could chew with that portion of the game. As such, my playthrough did feel like it went on a bit longer than was necessary.
But I digress. For the absurd amount of hours I put into Baldur's Gate 3 and the relief I feel now that it's over, the truth is that some part of me will miss it. I put in a lot of effort to ensure I would get the best ending for everyone. And why? Ultimately because I cared. I loved my companions and truly wanted the best for them. Hence why I did every side quest that was available to me, obsessed over passing ability checks and scoured every square inch of the maps. And when you're that invested in the events of a video game... what higher praise can you offer?