Summary
Despite the general success ofBaldur’s Gate 3, there are still some missing features that could improve the game. One of 2023’s biggest releases, and a front-runner (and winner) of many of the year’s awards ceremonies,Baldur’s Gate 3achieved mainstream appeal in a way that few other games in its specific archetype of RPG ever have, making it a standout in its own genre. As other RPGs follow in its wake, however, they’re showing that there are a few things that the biggest game of 2023 could improve on.
Althoughreception toBaldur’s Gate 3has been overwhelmingly positivesince the game’s launch, some aspects of the game have still drawn criticism. Most notably, like many other games in its genre,Baldur’s Gate 3is a notoriously buggy game, though this issue has improved over time, with several updates focused on fixing the game’s most pressing issues. Also included in patches were updates to the game’s actual content, with a new epilogue alleviating what some players saw as an underwhelming ending. While support forBG3is winding down, however, there’s one other feature the game could use.
“An Iconic, Engaging Mess Of Brilliant Ideas”: Baldur’s Gate 3 Review
Baldur’s Gate 3 is imposing in stature and its best moments are truly memorable, but some early issues with scale suggest an uneven experience.
One Dragon Age: The Veilguard Feature Could Make BG3’s Companions Better
Allowing BG3’s Companions To Romance Each Other Could Flesh Out Their Characters
In the lead-up to the release of another highly-anticipated RPG,Dragon Age: The Veilguard, it’s been announced thatthe game’s companions will be able to form romantic relationships with each otheras well as the player character - a feature thatBaldur’s Gate 3could also use. Implementing this feature would go a long way towards makingthe companions ofBG3feel more like their own characters, with their own lives and personalities separate from the player, and lead to better, more in-depth party dynamics - a notable weak point of the game even after several patches.
Companions being able to form romantic relationships with each other is something that’s appeared in past BioWare games as well, most notably with Garrus and Tali inMass Effect, and Dorian and Iron Bull inDragon Age: Inquisition.
To be fair, something like this is already somewhat present inBaldur’s Gate 3- the storylines and personal quests of Karlach and Wyll are somewhat intertwined, and if they go to Avernus together, without the player character having romanced either of them, they will have at least the implication of romantic relationship in the epilogue. But, even disregarding romantic aspects,relationships and interactions between companion characters inBaldur’s Gate 3can be disappointingly rare and minor, as the vast majority of interactions are focused on their relationship with the player character above all else.
One of the notable weak points ofBaldur’s Gate 3’s companionsis thatthey’re almost entirely lacking in interactions with each other. Even Shadowheart and Lae’zel - who start the game in conflict with each other to the point where one has to be talked down from killing the other - don’t really see a meaningful progression in their relationship unless one of them is the player character. Even when companions acknowledge the personal quests of other companions,they do so almost exclusively in conversations with the player character, or else in short one-liners if they’re present during certain story events.
BG3 Patch 7 Proves Why PC Is Better For Baldur’s Gate 3 Yet Again
Baldur’s Gate 3 has always been at its best on PC, and the newest update to the game will reinforce that concept more than ever before.
Better Companion Relationships Would Improve BG3, But Probably Won’t Happen
New Companion Interactions Are Likely Outside The Scope Of Future Updates
Unfortunately, while it would be nice to have some more in-depth party interaction inBaldur’s Gate 3, it’s not especially likely to happen. Even with another major patch on the way,Larian has already started on its next game, andsupport forBG3is winding down, making major content changes less likely in the updates to follow. Even if this weren’t the case, however, adding more interactions between companions across the entire game would require major changes, most of which would probably be outside the scope of post-launch updates.
It should be considered, also, that whileBaldur’s Gate 3’s lack of companion interaction can be disappointing,it also in some ways allows for the greatest degree of player freedom. Many of the game’s romances aren’t “locked in” until fairly late in the game, allowing players to switch between romantic partners more or less as desired - something that might change if certain companions formed romantic relationships with each other. Even in the already-existing case of Karlach and Wyll, their implied relationship only comes to fruition at the very end of the game, providing minimal interference with player choice.
While each companion inBaldur’s Gate 3can have a meaningful and fleshed-out relationship with the player character, their interactions with each other can feel almost non-existent, which in the worst case can make them feel like strangers who only happen to be working together. Allowing them to romance each other, like in the upcomingDragon Age: The Veilguard, could help to alleviate that problem - but even outside of romance, it would go a long way for the companions ofBaldur’s Gate 3to even feel like friends, however unlikely it is for that to happen in the updates the game has left.
Baldur’s Gate 3
Developed and published by Larian Studios, Baldur’s Gate 3 is an upcoming role-playing game set to release in August of 2023. Players will create a character to embark on a large-scale journey and can do so solo or cooperatively with a friend. Combat is a turn-based style this time around.
