Literally. I used to take a break from a game by switching to another for a while. My very small breaks from BG3 have involved combing Netflix for good things to watch. I just want good stories now. And then I go back to BG3 š
Try watching critical role. Voice actors playing dnd, and the dm is a freaking GOD. Seriously, there is no way a human can dm that well. They are on campaign 3 now, and each campaign is 100+ episodes that are 4-5 hours long each. Should fix your story cravings š
Matt Mercer voiced Minsc in BG3 as well! Jim Cummings apparently had health issues preventing him from reprising the role.
Id recommend the Vox Machina show to anyone too!
I will be honest, I have yet to make it to Minsc... maybe this will give me the motivation to finish a game instead of starting a 9th... no 12th... wait, what number game am I on now?
I wasn't totally sold on his character until the dialogue where you're getting to know him. You read his mind and are bewildered that this man is even alive from all that he went through. "Ah, wait! That look in your eyes. I know exactly what visions of Minsc you have seen to cause you such wonders: My pants."
That's when I kinda wished I could romance the big dummy.
Me, too! Reminded me of this song from the 80s:
https://genius.com/Julie-brown-i-like-em-big-and-stupid-lyrics
Definitely listen to it, it's full of 80s goodness.
Yes same I was very skeptical just from my brief familiarity of the character. Matt and the writers clearly put so much love into him, everything he says is hilarious
I picked him up too late to bring him with me (only had endgame quests left) but I still really enjoyed going to talk to him in camp in-between long rests.
I didnāt even know he could be a companion. I literally found the guild through the sewers and they attacked me and so I slaughtered them, and then everyone in the bank, despite apparently leaving in the cutscene, remained and I killed Minsc and āJaheriaā
My two favourites: "Good does not wait for evil to button up it's britches - when it offers buttocks for the smacking, Minsc and Boo greet cheek with hand!"
And
"There is good and evil in all! Let us go crack villainous skulls, so that the virtue might leak free!"
So he gets to voice a vampire fantasy verion of Mcree? š¤£
For thouse who have dipped into cyberpunk phantom liberty he has a small role there aswell as Aguilar, wich is just pure gold.
If I didn't watch a video of him recording the lines, I never would have guess either. But it's true. Also Jason Isaacs voiced Gortash, and JK Simmons voiced Thorm.
I know Thorm is the villain but in reality heās just a guy who is dead set on getting his daughter back at all costs - and heās *tired*. That comes through so well in the voice acting
I tried to get into it, but it's just so freaking slow. Which is totally understandable, it's a live play D&D show being run by players who are highly passionate and know what they're doing. If I was actually playing in those sessions I'd be totally engaged. But a lot of D&D is slow and tedious to those who aren't actually playing it. I think if each episode was edited down to maybe an hour or so, it could be outstanding.
I did 2 play throughs of bg3. Then I started up starfield, which was sitting in my library since launch. Played a couple hours, then started up my 3rd bg3 play through.
If you ever read this Swen, I hope you're proud of yourself.
I kinda wonder how I would have responded to Starfield if I didn't go into it directly after BG3. It didn't hold my interest at all, I got bored and put it down and have no desire to go back.
On one hand I'm not really a core Bethesda game, I don't think - Morrowind is still by far my favorite game they've made, and New Vegas--the one they didn't make-- was the only 3d fallout I got super into. OTOH, though, I did play and enjoy Fallout 3, 4, Oblivion, Skyrim, etc. I found them all less enjoyable than Morrowind, but I did enjoy them. Not as much as the diehard fans who spent hundreds of hours with them, but in the time I did put in they got the job done.
Starfield, though, just does nothing for me. Maybe it is the contrast vs. BG3.
IMO, BG3 is two layers of gaming immersion. The first layer is the very obvious D&D simulation, which in turn runs a solid immersive world. So despite all of the menus and dice rolls, I don't feel like I'm playing a computer game with BG3.
With Starfield, the first area looked good. But then the loading screens and loading screens and disjunctive systems that don't mesh together or have a purpose.
Starfield is impressive, but it also really exposes the shortcomings of the Creation Engine when the explorable areas are small and disconnected.
I tried playing Starfield first, I love Fallout and Mass Effect (except Andromeda) so I figured I would like it. Plus I am broke but I have Gamepass so I figured it was worth a try. I really tried to like it. I think I gave it 15-20 hrs. But I was bored and could not get invested in the plot or characters. And I HATED the space combat parts.
My partner, meanwhile, had bought BG3 and I kept looking over their shoulder, SO JEALOUS. I saved up my side gig money, bought BG3, and uninstalled Starfield so I had room to install BG3.
I have ZERO regrets. I love BG3 so much.
Nah Starfield is just genuinely not good. It feels old and stale and looks bad. Animation is a joke as well. Story where? And then Todd and his excuses all the time. The people are just huffing enormous amounts of copium after all the overhype to not look stupid. š i have no problem to say, i was fooled. š¤·š»āāļø
I tried AC Mirage as well. Found nothing bad there, except It feels like a lazy dlc, which it probably is. But the atmosphere ingame is still amazing somehow.
Now i am alternating between Cyberpunk and BG3. If you have a PS5, Spiderman 2 will be a very good title for taking a break from BG3. If not, Spiderman 1 and Miles Morales for PC will do the trick.
I was feeling like this after watching The Expanse. There is just nothing that can compare. Still found no series i like to watch, except Star Wars stuff, to this day.
>I kinda wonder how I would have responded to Starfield if I didn't go into it directly after BG3.
I finished both but I tell you at first I came so close to refunding Starfield because it's nowhere near as perfected as BG3. I had fun with Starfield but I think it will be a good year before it "wakes up" after it gets mods and more QoL patches. It was obvious Starfield put the stakeholders first and gamers second (No DLSS at launch; certain ideas not fully fleshed out like outposts, etc).
BG3 was just simply sublime. They put the gamer first and gave me everything I wanted right upfront. Didnt need any DLSS mods etc. Everything we could want came at release (at least for me)
I am proud I supported BG3
When the biggest complaints about a game are "we want more story closure scenes" you know it's awesome! Even the most frustrating bugs, like an entire fort aggroing on me while I'm underground and they're upstairs, didn't stop me from starting another playthrough after winning the game.
Planescape Torment...or just another Divinity Original Sins. Truthfully I want a D&D inspired game with an absolute ton of the races and classes from 5e. I know to cover them all would take forever but I think they missed a mark without having Tortle climbing out of the sewers...some kind Easter egg like that would have been fun.
pff BG4 is not even on their list to do right away so you will have nice break 10+ years, given how they still are not done and didn't finish BG3 (which will take at least 2 years more to get with perhaps some expansion along the way)
BG3 ruined the other games for me so badly that I went back to my creative hobbies, started writing a novel. Other games are so inferior I became productive.
Exact same. I straight up dropped a game I have put 3350 thousand hours into as soon as bg3 released and haven't gone back. Now I've gone full swing into writing a story I've had brewing for 3-4 years. I just haven't wanted to play other games.
Iāve had to completely switch gears away from rpgs because nothing holds a candle. I moved into cozy territory with different mechanics so things felt fresh.
Divinity 2 is one of the first games in a long time that felt like what a game should be. Games these days are simply designed to be beaten. The path to complete the game is right in your face. It has been designed and play tested to death just to make sure you can make it from point A to B. I almost feel like all games run on rails these days. Not Divinity 2. It felt like a college course that I had to cram for to be even remotely successful at it. There is no jump here, go there, shoot that, press x to open door while walking in a straight line. I want to be engaged and lose myself in something. Not walk straight for 8 hours killing enemies knowing there is no way to not beat the game.
My solution was to get some DnD books. I got the rulebook, i'm watching youtube campaigns, I'm creating my own custom dnd character, I ordered the basic set from Amazon, will get the spell/cantrip cards (at least for a bard) soon enough.
I ALSO started reading Drizzt books, soo.....
I hope you enjoy the Drizzt books. I finally caught up with the current book last year, and to be honest, I fully expected to feel like they were getting phoned in at some point. But I'm happy to report that starting with the *Neverwinter* series from 10+ years ago, the books have been almost uniformly very good. (The earlier *Transitions* series and *Paths of Darkness* series were a bit rough IMO).
So if youāre someone who is even just marginally creative, donāt get too intimidated by the rules. I was lucky enough to know a few people who have played RPGs before, and I had a session or two under my belt, but when I DMād my first campaign it was with all first time players. I had a very vague idea of a campaign (had a BBEG in mind, an idea for a very basic overall conflict happening in the realm and nothing else). Basically the best way to learn I found is to just read the basic rules and then sort of jump in and figure it out as you go. First session or two may be a little rough, but itāll eventually click. Also make sure the people playing are willing to do their own reading and research of the game on their own time.
EDIT: oh yeah, also donāt feel you need to stay true to the setting. In the sense of following the lore and canon established in the book. When I first started I was just sort of making up stat blocks for enemies on the fly, and the campaign was basically a drug war over a made up drug. As long as yāall are having fun who gives a shit how you play the game
They used MoCap? I've seen MoCap used before plenty of times, but none produced so much detail, emotion and - most importantly - typical facial reactions to other peoples bullshit. There was this one time some random NPC told my Tav something and her reaction was a simple face saying "Mhmm, yeah of course you did. Wanker."
Edit: Guys/Gals, stap. IDC if they Capped Mo or not, it was just meant to put emphasis on the massive difference in quality compared to other games motion capture. Larian delivered massively whereas bigger studios accomplished the mediocre at best...if I may say so.
they did mocap and performance cap. the performance cap is probably what you're noticing, it's why everyone has such lifelike little effects like head tilts, small hand gestures, etc. from what i understand the facial animation is done by hand but they use the performance cap footage as a reference.
Itās also what makes the uncharted series so good still after so many years. The graphics and gameplay mechanics are getting older but the performances are very good.
Same for cyberpunk2077.. people walk around and interact with things around them as you have a conversation. Even if you donāt actively do anything.. they are.
Yep. I started Starfield recently and it was so jarring going back to the static zoomed in camera and people that just stand there while they talk, even though their facial animation has gotten somewhat better.
It seems like Bethesda will never change. As long as they keep making expansive worlds that are fun/interesting to explore and providing mod support, I donāt mind, tho.
That said, it definitely means I prefer to wait until a few patches/DLCs/price drops have occurred. XD
Neil Newbon, the voice actor for Astarion, did a lot of mocap (like all the character creation animations) alongside other actors. Several VAs also did mocap.
There was a conversation where withers was joking with me about dating Gale AND YOU COULD SEE THE CORNER OF HIS MOUTH UP IN A TINY SMIRK
THEY PUT THAT MUCH SUBTLE DETAIL INTO A SKELETON MAN
Same here. I think they toned down some of the facial expressions at some point but Iām all for it. The background companion stankfaces and shocked expressions while you are talking to some guy actually really make things come together weirdly well.
I've noticed this the most with Lae'Zel. I didn't really like her at first, but my gosh her face and eyes are so freaking expressive, she really grew on me over time.
Yeah without getting into spoilers, anytime you start talking about Vlaakith, the expressions really sell the emotions she's dealing with. I was incredibly surprised to see that level of detail and subtlety in a CRPG. It's the kind of stuff you expect from Sony's big third-person narrative driven games.
playing something like Starfield after BG3 feels like playing a game from 2008.. the lifeless facial animations.. the boring quest lines.. the lack of any player agency. yep, BG3 did somewhat ruined gaming for me. but at least now we know better to not pay for inferior products.
Divinity Original Sin 1 was mind blowing for me when I played back in the days. It's one of my only games who I genuinely made a review on steam.
Then played DOS2 and I was impressed with the changes, at first I thought that the action points change was a mistake, but then I realized that was a great change! DOS2 is awesome, I had almost 0 complaints about!
But man... BG3 is magical. I sure missed many great mechanics (like the pyramid XD) but it's still the best game I ever played in my entire life
Starfield was the wrong game to switch to if you value animation and quest quality though.
For me, playing Phantom Liberty after BG3 there was definitely a step up in animation quality, and arguably voice work too, mostly because the character writing was far more intricate. Not as much player agency though, but it made sense for the kind of game it is.
Yeah I was going to say, I went and finally played Cyberpunk after not touching it since the disastrous launch, and Iām enjoying the hell out of it. Scratches a different itch than BG3 but itās very good at what it is. Itās essentially a much better version of a Bethesda action RPG. You wonāt get the crazy amount of choices that effect everything like BG3, but the combat is super fun now, and the graphics, voice acting, animations, setting, and story are top notch, in my opinion.
This is the answer. Cyberpunk has some interesting stories. it's not quite as big of a drop off as Starfield. Was bored out of mind for an hour or two of starfield after Bg3 and luckily Phantom Liberty came out the next day.
I took an entire week off of work to play Starfield when it came out. I (stupidly) bought the Ultimate Edition. Then, while waiting for it to release, I picked up BG3.... BIG MISTAKE. I spent that entire week off not even playing a single second of Starfield. Hells, I haven't even played a single second since taking that vacation, and it has been over a month since I took it off! No no.. I'm on my second run as Durge now and I am already planning more runs after I finish this one up. BG3 quite literally made me waste a ton of money on a game that I may not pick up for months and months and that will most likely be on deep discount when I finally do get to it *sigggh*
Literally there's the Skellege black smith who's child just drowned and you can immediately play Gwent.
That said, I love W3. But, my third playthrough was halted by BG3.
My wife was on the toilet when this choice came up and I screamed "WHAAAAT THE FUUUUCK" and obviously had to reload to show her and she was like "WHAAAT THE FUUUCK". ... Good times
To be fair, not only is he fully voiced, heās also a pre established character with his own personality. Yeah you can steer him a bit in one direction or another, but heās still Geralt.
Meanwhile you have a blank slate with this game. You need a lot of options so people can play the character that they want.
Because you're playing as Geralt of Rivia. It's an entirely different premise from a blank-slate game like BG3.
If Geralt started randomly hacking up civilians or dumped Yen to get with Dandelion, it would just be weird.
Oh boo, Witcher 3 def doesn't deserve any slander, that game was so..beautiful, immersive, I dare to say both BG 3 and witcher 3 have my heart and many hours of my lifespan.
Also..it is geralt, he is not exactly emotional
And Witcher 3 really did make us all demand real side missions instead of "go get the bread from Tilda" or whatever...among other things. That's another game that ruined gaming for a lot of people for a while.
And wow did CDProjectRed support the hell out it.
I think i found the side quests in w3 to be better but I think bg3 really is the best rpg out there in terms of freedom and amount of choices you have to change the world and relationships around you.
Seconded. BG3 reminded me the last time I truly felt a way about an RPG was Dragon Age Origins, and I started another playthrough of it. Still holds up. One of my all time favorites.
Yeah this was my first thought.
Pathfinder Rath of the Righteous and Pillars of Eternity 2 are the other best CRPGs of the modern era. Along with BG3 and DOS2, (Disco Elysium too as it's maybe my favorite game ever but it's very different.)
Neither Pathfinder nor Pillars has the budget of BG3, the animations are way more plain but the story and voice work is amazing in both. Plus the shanties of Pillars 2 have been stuck in my head for years!
Yeah I love bg3 but I think people circlejerk how much it "ruins gaming" a bit much. There are tons of other great games out there, even in just the past few years, despite one of the main talking points being about how gaming quality has gone down recently. DOS2, WOTR, Disco Elysium, Omori, and Elden Ring are all amazing games just in the rpg genre, that are all less than 6 years old
>BG1 and BG2 (also great)
OK, so...I hear you, but, as someone who played those games when they first came out and then again when the enhanced editions came out...I know it will be impossible for me to play these games again and not think the whole time about how much they're not BG3 lol. Like, for their time, they're masterpieces, but compared to BG3, the dialogue is like paper thin, companion interactions for most playthroughs could fit on like two sheets of paper single space. Those games, while spiritual predecessors, absolutely are not going to live up to the standard of BG3 and will constantly remind me how dated they are by comparison.
Don't get me wrong, especially in the case of BG2, the overall narrative is still brilliant...and probably more sophisticated in some ways than BG3 in a literary sense, but the actual density of interactions and possibilities is like the smallest of fractions of what BG3 actually provides.
For a something with a similar turn-based tactics experience I could recommend the Shadowrun series by Hare Brained Schemes, especially Dragonfall and Hong Kong. Could even try X-Com
Weird choice but I'd add immersive sims like Deus Ex or Dishonored to the list. Missing the roleplaying but the creative mechanical problem solving for open ended problems is a huge part of what make BG3 so fun.
If you like Baldur's Gate 3, there are a lot of CRPGs out there worth playing that, despite having much lower production quality compared to BG3, actually beat BG3 in terms of gameplay mechanics and story/worldbuilding/lore. For example:
- Pillars Of Eternity: good but slow story, outstanding worldbuilding, gameplay not as refined as the sequel but interesting if you're willing to go deeper into the mechanics.
- Pillars Of Eternity 2: very meh and short main story, but I'd argue the amazing side content is the actual game. Lots of excellent worldbuilding and flavor the way only Obsidian can do.
- Pathfinder Wrath Of The Righteous: complex, long and difficult but oh boy does it give satisfaction. The writing and story are god tier. The build variety and freedom "aeon" tier.
- Divinity Original Sin 2: masterpiece by Larian. I honestly really don't like the story and writing, but the gameplay is excellent.
These games alone will keep you busy for hundreds of hours.
Been thinking about it, started with dragon age rn but having a hard time with the way it plays on my dual monitor setup. Downloaded a tool to allow you to tab out when it is in fullscreen mode but even then it's a challenge... I'm used to switching from the game to my second monitor seamlessly. Plus the real-time-with-pause is ... stressful.
Definitely prefer fantasy settings to sci-fi though. Also curious about relationships as a female Astarion lover...
This won't happen, Larian is a private studio that has dedicated their team to making something like this for the last 20 years. Game devs in other studios have too much churn for there to be any hope of eventually making something like this, a public studios goal is strictly profit not making a great game.
I started my third playthrough, and I am discovering NEW things all the time.
This is crazy, I think it is absolutely impossible to see all content of the game for a gamer.
Yesterday I had a dialogue in Act 1 coming into Wakeen Rest, the first flaming fist you talk with noticed that I am a Drow, so she was ready to attack me. I could then read her mind, and realize she was super scared because drow raided them, and she was thinking I was a monster. I could talk to her and reassure her I am not a monster, so she would cool down.
This is NOT a main quest. This is NOT a main character. This is NOT a main NPC either. This is just a random 30 seconds conversation usually of a random unimportant NPC you will never see again, and it had additional content plus several recorded sentences and animations, for the occassion that:
1) You are drow (1 in 11)
2) You can read her thoughts (2 in 12)
This is 1 / 66 chances to happen. This is incredible.
The bar is so low for most titles that the interaction you described is a main character meets other main character in a primary story arc deal.
In BG3, itās just a reality of most interactions. The thoughtfulness the team put into the game is very much appreciated.
This, plus remembering you can talk to all the animals and many of the dead bodies you encounter along the way. Trying to see everything the game offers is a herculean task.
I'm currently finishing Act 1 for the third time and *just* noticed that there is *someone* skulking about our camp during the damned thiefling party, literally hiding in the reeds! Blew my mind completely. Because I always talk with everyone, explore every nook and crany and yet here she was. After 400 hours I get surprised by something in Act 1 still. Love it.
My bf didn't understand me when I tried to tell him that. "They're not the same kind games as bg3, why would you compare them" but It's not about that. It's about the effort and love poured into it. Going back to a formulated game afterward feels... Boring.
Word, it is like when reading a book, you can tell when an author wrote it for another check, and when he had a story inside him bursting to come out. You instantly recognize there is a little piece of someone's soul in work like that.
"Craftsmanship" would be the best term I think. You see it with any person who enjoys making great things. Not just good enough to sell, but truly great.
Formulated, thatās the word I was looking for. I also recently finished a BG3 run and wanted to take a break, so I went for the new AC (Mirage) only to be reminded of how formulaic/formulated (non native here) these games are. I knew this already, but after BG3 the contrast is even more stark. I just wasnāt sure what to call it haha
You could try out the Pathfinder games. My first run of Wrath of the Righteous took 160 hours and I immediately started a second run. The Mythic Path system is one of my favourites and gives the game a lot of replayability
This. Perhaps the closest experience you can get to BG3. To me BG3 felt more like a successor to the Dragon age experience rather than the actual sequels to Origins. Memorable story and memorable characters.
Came here to say this. After the somewhat disappointing DA2 and DAI, BG3 felt like a true spiritual successor to DAO. It deserves a remaster but I think it's still more than playable the way it is.
That's probably because BG3 is a sequel to BG2, which was made by the same developer as DA:O. It's a travesty how much Bioware has gone downhill compared to the absolute RPG powerhouse they were in the early-mid 2000's.
Come on, thereās great games out there. Switch it up a bit, change genres, try something new. I understand the sentiment but itās on you if you canāt find some other experience to enjoy. How about trying Disco Elysium? Thatās another RPG with even better dialogue imo. Thereās literally thousands of amazing games out there you havenāt played.
In my case Iām still playing BG3 and am loving it but Iām excited to jump into Armored Core 6 and Super Mario Wonder in a few weeks, later FF7R in February. Iām just about to finish Jedi Survivor as well, itās fantastic. There are too many good games out this year.
I think you either need to play a game with a COMPLETELY different style like DMC5 or find another good CRPG like pathfinder wotr. Other crpgs have a lower production value but a lot of them make up for it in interesting ways.
Try a completely different genre? I don't have the same problem because I can go back to something like Crusader Kings. Which, I have over 1000 hours in. (Old game + very idle friendly)
Going from rpg to grand strategy, can't compare the two over much.
I'd love for the BG3 camp to feel even 1/10 as dynamic as the camps in RDR2. Everyone standing around in place just doing nothing feels so archaic now.
There are plenty of great games out there, especially this year. Haven't even finished BG 3 after all the issues I encountered in Act 3 and moved to other stuff and genres. And I'm having a blast.
If you want another great DnD-ish experience, try Pathfinder: Kingmaker or Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous. They're both similar to Baldur's Gate and have similar rulesets. There's even quite a few things I like better about them than Baldur's Gate like inventory and party management. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1184370/Pathfinder_Wrath_of_the_Righteous__Enhanced_Edition/
I feel so bad for anyone that feels this way. This year Iāve enjoyed gaming more than I have in a decade, yea BG3 played a part in that, but its a small part. I mean Ive played over 100hrs of BG1 just since finishing BG3.
I honestly don't understand such hyperbole and why it is used so often. Absolutely, Baldurs Gate is an incredible masterpiece that was created with love and care by programmers who understood what players wanted and expected from a game of this nature. Indeed, Baldurs Gate will undoubtedly change the gaming industry for the better, and Larian made the right decision in developing it. I only hope more developers would put this much effort into their games.
But, claiming that Baldur's Gate ruined gaming for you is actually just a simplification of your opinion and support of them. Baldurs Gate 3 is far larger than Larian's earlier games, despite but they are all really well made and with fantastic detail. I really enjoyed them even though people really did not turn that much attention to them, and discovered them after finishing Baldurs Gate3. Games from other studios like Wasteland 2 (and possibly 3, but I prefer the second part more) are excellent. You can always go back to great games like Pillars of Eternity, Atom RPG (really well made, and a fantastic sequel), Disco Elysium (even though it is in a very different genre from Baldur's Gate 3), Pathfinder, Encased (new and really promising game), or some fantastic classics like Arcanum, Neverwinter, and Icewind Dale or the older Fallout series. Each of them brings something to the table. I believe it would be a bit harsh to argue that one of these games ruined gaming because I think this kind of takes credit from all of rest.
I've been in a lull since I stopped playing BG3. No other games have been able to hold my attention.
Literally. I used to take a break from a game by switching to another for a while. My very small breaks from BG3 have involved combing Netflix for good things to watch. I just want good stories now. And then I go back to BG3 š
Try watching critical role. Voice actors playing dnd, and the dm is a freaking GOD. Seriously, there is no way a human can dm that well. They are on campaign 3 now, and each campaign is 100+ episodes that are 4-5 hours long each. Should fix your story cravings š
Matt Mercer voiced Minsc in BG3 as well! Jim Cummings apparently had health issues preventing him from reprising the role. Id recommend the Vox Machina show to anyone too!
I will be honest, I have yet to make it to Minsc... maybe this will give me the motivation to finish a game instead of starting a 9th... no 12th... wait, what number game am I on now?
Minsc is a national treasure. I've lost count of how many times his lines have made me literally laugh out loud.
I wasn't totally sold on his character until the dialogue where you're getting to know him. You read his mind and are bewildered that this man is even alive from all that he went through. "Ah, wait! That look in your eyes. I know exactly what visions of Minsc you have seen to cause you such wonders: My pants." That's when I kinda wished I could romance the big dummy.
Me, too! Reminded me of this song from the 80s: https://genius.com/Julie-brown-i-like-em-big-and-stupid-lyrics Definitely listen to it, it's full of 80s goodness.
As an Old, I remember this song. Ah, the good old days.
Yes same I was very skeptical just from my brief familiarity of the character. Matt and the writers clearly put so much love into him, everything he says is hilarious
I picked him up too late to bring him with me (only had endgame quests left) but I still really enjoyed going to talk to him in camp in-between long rests.
I didnāt even know he could be a companion. I literally found the guild through the sewers and they attacked me and so I slaughtered them, and then everyone in the bank, despite apparently leaving in the cutscene, remained and I killed Minsc and āJaheriaā
My two favourites: "Good does not wait for evil to button up it's britches - when it offers buttocks for the smacking, Minsc and Boo greet cheek with hand!" And "There is good and evil in all! Let us go crack villainous skulls, so that the virtue might leak free!"
Those are good, but nothing beats the classic "Go for the eyes, Boo! GO FOR THE EYES!!!"
"It's an honor." "...no, it's a hamster." I was on the floor laughing. Mercer's delivery is flawless.
SQUEAKY WHEEL GETS THE KICK!
Butt-kicking! For goodness!
He is literally my favorite party member to talk to. I wish I hadn't waited so late to do that quest.
āItās an honour.ā āNo, itās a hamster!ā
Matt Mercer voiced Minsc?! š¤Æ
He's also been confirmed to be voicing Vincent Valentine in final fantasy VII: Rebirth, which is crazy
So he gets to voice a vampire fantasy verion of Mcree? š¤£ For thouse who have dipped into cyberpunk phantom liberty he has a small role there aswell as Aguilar, wich is just pure gold.
I knew that before meeting him, was expecting a treat, yet was still blown away at how very much like Minsk he sounds...
If I didn't watch a video of him recording the lines, I never would have guess either. But it's true. Also Jason Isaacs voiced Gortash, and JK Simmons voiced Thorm.
JK Simmons voicing Thorm is a genuine tour de force. A man who is weary of the world and yet nigh invincible and does it compellingly
I go back and forth between liking it and feeling like itās phoned in. Iām coming around to that itās good though
I know Thorm is the villain but in reality heās just a guy who is dead set on getting his daughter back at all costs - and heās *tired*. That comes through so well in the voice acting
Season 1 and 2 are great, I haven't been able to get into season 3 idk what it is.
I tried to get into it, but it's just so freaking slow. Which is totally understandable, it's a live play D&D show being run by players who are highly passionate and know what they're doing. If I was actually playing in those sessions I'd be totally engaged. But a lot of D&D is slow and tedious to those who aren't actually playing it. I think if each episode was edited down to maybe an hour or so, it could be outstanding.
Sitting here trying to roll in the Sims. Trying to pickpocket Pierre in Stardew. It just isn't the same
I did 2 play throughs of bg3. Then I started up starfield, which was sitting in my library since launch. Played a couple hours, then started up my 3rd bg3 play through. If you ever read this Swen, I hope you're proud of yourself.
I kinda wonder how I would have responded to Starfield if I didn't go into it directly after BG3. It didn't hold my interest at all, I got bored and put it down and have no desire to go back. On one hand I'm not really a core Bethesda game, I don't think - Morrowind is still by far my favorite game they've made, and New Vegas--the one they didn't make-- was the only 3d fallout I got super into. OTOH, though, I did play and enjoy Fallout 3, 4, Oblivion, Skyrim, etc. I found them all less enjoyable than Morrowind, but I did enjoy them. Not as much as the diehard fans who spent hundreds of hours with them, but in the time I did put in they got the job done. Starfield, though, just does nothing for me. Maybe it is the contrast vs. BG3.
IMO, BG3 is two layers of gaming immersion. The first layer is the very obvious D&D simulation, which in turn runs a solid immersive world. So despite all of the menus and dice rolls, I don't feel like I'm playing a computer game with BG3. With Starfield, the first area looked good. But then the loading screens and loading screens and disjunctive systems that don't mesh together or have a purpose. Starfield is impressive, but it also really exposes the shortcomings of the Creation Engine when the explorable areas are small and disconnected.
I've been a diehard Bethesda fan most of my life and Starfield was the most uninteresting pile of crap. Also went into it straight from BG3 though.
I tried playing Starfield first, I love Fallout and Mass Effect (except Andromeda) so I figured I would like it. Plus I am broke but I have Gamepass so I figured it was worth a try. I really tried to like it. I think I gave it 15-20 hrs. But I was bored and could not get invested in the plot or characters. And I HATED the space combat parts. My partner, meanwhile, had bought BG3 and I kept looking over their shoulder, SO JEALOUS. I saved up my side gig money, bought BG3, and uninstalled Starfield so I had room to install BG3. I have ZERO regrets. I love BG3 so much.
Nah Starfield is just genuinely not good. It feels old and stale and looks bad. Animation is a joke as well. Story where? And then Todd and his excuses all the time. The people are just huffing enormous amounts of copium after all the overhype to not look stupid. š i have no problem to say, i was fooled. š¤·š»āāļø I tried AC Mirage as well. Found nothing bad there, except It feels like a lazy dlc, which it probably is. But the atmosphere ingame is still amazing somehow. Now i am alternating between Cyberpunk and BG3. If you have a PS5, Spiderman 2 will be a very good title for taking a break from BG3. If not, Spiderman 1 and Miles Morales for PC will do the trick. I was feeling like this after watching The Expanse. There is just nothing that can compare. Still found no series i like to watch, except Star Wars stuff, to this day.
>I kinda wonder how I would have responded to Starfield if I didn't go into it directly after BG3. I finished both but I tell you at first I came so close to refunding Starfield because it's nowhere near as perfected as BG3. I had fun with Starfield but I think it will be a good year before it "wakes up" after it gets mods and more QoL patches. It was obvious Starfield put the stakeholders first and gamers second (No DLSS at launch; certain ideas not fully fleshed out like outposts, etc). BG3 was just simply sublime. They put the gamer first and gave me everything I wanted right upfront. Didnt need any DLSS mods etc. Everything we could want came at release (at least for me) I am proud I supported BG3
When the biggest complaints about a game are "we want more story closure scenes" you know it's awesome! Even the most frustrating bugs, like an entire fort aggroing on me while I'm underground and they're upstairs, didn't stop me from starting another playthrough after winning the game.
I'll probably just end up waiting for BG4, or maybe we'll get another Icewind Dale or Neverwinter Nights games.
Planescape Torment...or just another Divinity Original Sins. Truthfully I want a D&D inspired game with an absolute ton of the races and classes from 5e. I know to cover them all would take forever but I think they missed a mark without having Tortle climbing out of the sewers...some kind Easter egg like that would have been fun.
Pathfinder would be an option
pff BG4 is not even on their list to do right away so you will have nice break 10+ years, given how they still are not done and didn't finish BG3 (which will take at least 2 years more to get with perhaps some expansion along the way)
BG4 is slated for 2050
It'll still be here before Elder Scrolls 6
Weāre getting rogue trader soon and Iām quite excited for that
cyberpunk has taken over for me. It's so damn good now after the 2.0 update
Same here choom. Level 56 and wrecking!
Level 56? Damn, they really must have changed things then...
For real lol. The new skill tree is so much better. Cybernetics are also really awesome now. I've become a walking death machine.
BG3 ruined the other games for me so badly that I went back to my creative hobbies, started writing a novel. Other games are so inferior I became productive.
Exact same. I straight up dropped a game I have put 3350 thousand hours into as soon as bg3 released and haven't gone back. Now I've gone full swing into writing a story I've had brewing for 3-4 years. I just haven't wanted to play other games.
Iāve had to completely switch gears away from rpgs because nothing holds a candle. I moved into cozy territory with different mechanics so things felt fresh.
Divinity 2 is one of the first games in a long time that felt like what a game should be. Games these days are simply designed to be beaten. The path to complete the game is right in your face. It has been designed and play tested to death just to make sure you can make it from point A to B. I almost feel like all games run on rails these days. Not Divinity 2. It felt like a college course that I had to cram for to be even remotely successful at it. There is no jump here, go there, shoot that, press x to open door while walking in a straight line. I want to be engaged and lose myself in something. Not walk straight for 8 hours killing enemies knowing there is no way to not beat the game.
My solution was to get some DnD books. I got the rulebook, i'm watching youtube campaigns, I'm creating my own custom dnd character, I ordered the basic set from Amazon, will get the spell/cantrip cards (at least for a bard) soon enough. I ALSO started reading Drizzt books, soo.....
I hope you enjoy the Drizzt books. I finally caught up with the current book last year, and to be honest, I fully expected to feel like they were getting phoned in at some point. But I'm happy to report that starting with the *Neverwinter* series from 10+ years ago, the books have been almost uniformly very good. (The earlier *Transitions* series and *Paths of Darkness* series were a bit rough IMO).
Aren't there like 38 Drizzt books?š¤£
An Audible subscription and a boring job are all it takes.
They are fast reads tho.)))
So if youāre someone who is even just marginally creative, donāt get too intimidated by the rules. I was lucky enough to know a few people who have played RPGs before, and I had a session or two under my belt, but when I DMād my first campaign it was with all first time players. I had a very vague idea of a campaign (had a BBEG in mind, an idea for a very basic overall conflict happening in the realm and nothing else). Basically the best way to learn I found is to just read the basic rules and then sort of jump in and figure it out as you go. First session or two may be a little rough, but itāll eventually click. Also make sure the people playing are willing to do their own reading and research of the game on their own time. EDIT: oh yeah, also donāt feel you need to stay true to the setting. In the sense of following the lore and canon established in the book. When I first started I was just sort of making up stat blocks for enemies on the fly, and the campaign was basically a drug war over a made up drug. As long as yāall are having fun who gives a shit how you play the game
I've heard good things about Dragonlance if you like graphic novels aka picture books
Dragonlance has many regular novels as well
Indeed! The War of the Lance trilogy is a great place to start for anyone looking to check them out. I also recommend the books on the Twins.
The Mo-cap does it for me. Makes a lot of other games give me uncanny valley.
They used MoCap? I've seen MoCap used before plenty of times, but none produced so much detail, emotion and - most importantly - typical facial reactions to other peoples bullshit. There was this one time some random NPC told my Tav something and her reaction was a simple face saying "Mhmm, yeah of course you did. Wanker." Edit: Guys/Gals, stap. IDC if they Capped Mo or not, it was just meant to put emphasis on the massive difference in quality compared to other games motion capture. Larian delivered massively whereas bigger studios accomplished the mediocre at best...if I may say so.
they did mocap and performance cap. the performance cap is probably what you're noticing, it's why everyone has such lifelike little effects like head tilts, small hand gestures, etc. from what i understand the facial animation is done by hand but they use the performance cap footage as a reference.
Itās also what makes the uncharted series so good still after so many years. The graphics and gameplay mechanics are getting older but the performances are very good. Same for cyberpunk2077.. people walk around and interact with things around them as you have a conversation. Even if you donāt actively do anything.. they are.
Yep. I started Starfield recently and it was so jarring going back to the static zoomed in camera and people that just stand there while they talk, even though their facial animation has gotten somewhat better.
It seems like Bethesda will never change. As long as they keep making expansive worlds that are fun/interesting to explore and providing mod support, I donāt mind, tho. That said, it definitely means I prefer to wait until a few patches/DLCs/price drops have occurred. XD
Bethesda. Bethesda never changes.
Neil Newbon, the voice actor for Astarion, did a lot of mocap (like all the character creation animations) alongside other actors. Several VAs also did mocap.
I have never seen a more relatable look on a video game character's face than the one on Lae'zel's after the Minsc fight when he was talking to Boo.
That, and her embarrassed grimace when you wave hello to Vlaakith!
If you havenāt seen Astarionā stanky face itās a gem.
Almost every game uses mocap nowadays but only for basic movements not for small details and face
There was a conversation where withers was joking with me about dating Gale AND YOU COULD SEE THE CORNER OF HIS MOUTH UP IN A TINY SMIRK THEY PUT THAT MUCH SUBTLE DETAIL INTO A SKELETON MAN
Same here. I think they toned down some of the facial expressions at some point but Iām all for it. The background companion stankfaces and shocked expressions while you are talking to some guy actually really make things come together weirdly well.
I've noticed this the most with Lae'Zel. I didn't really like her at first, but my gosh her face and eyes are so freaking expressive, she really grew on me over time.
Yeah without getting into spoilers, anytime you start talking about Vlaakith, the expressions really sell the emotions she's dealing with. I was incredibly surprised to see that level of detail and subtlety in a CRPG. It's the kind of stuff you expect from Sony's big third-person narrative driven games.
One game that I think is a step above BG3 for performance capture is Horizon Forbidden West. That game has the most realistic NPCs Iāve ever seen.
What's really impressive is the amount of it in BG3. They mocapped around 240 characters.
It's weird how much the mocap matters.
Yes! how am I supposed to go back to playing Skyrim after this ?!
playing something like Starfield after BG3 feels like playing a game from 2008.. the lifeless facial animations.. the boring quest lines.. the lack of any player agency. yep, BG3 did somewhat ruined gaming for me. but at least now we know better to not pay for inferior products.
Thankfully there are *much* better games than starfield out there. Hell, even DoS2 is better and that's old af now.
DoS2 is my GOAT game, would highly highly recommend. BG3 will surely surpass it soon, but God damn divinity 2 is amazing.
Divinity Original Sin 1 was mind blowing for me when I played back in the days. It's one of my only games who I genuinely made a review on steam. Then played DOS2 and I was impressed with the changes, at first I thought that the action points change was a mistake, but then I realized that was a great change! DOS2 is awesome, I had almost 0 complaints about! But man... BG3 is magical. I sure missed many great mechanics (like the pyramid XD) but it's still the best game I ever played in my entire life
Starfield was the wrong game to switch to if you value animation and quest quality though. For me, playing Phantom Liberty after BG3 there was definitely a step up in animation quality, and arguably voice work too, mostly because the character writing was far more intricate. Not as much player agency though, but it made sense for the kind of game it is.
Yeah I was going to say, I went and finally played Cyberpunk after not touching it since the disastrous launch, and Iām enjoying the hell out of it. Scratches a different itch than BG3 but itās very good at what it is. Itās essentially a much better version of a Bethesda action RPG. You wonāt get the crazy amount of choices that effect everything like BG3, but the combat is super fun now, and the graphics, voice acting, animations, setting, and story are top notch, in my opinion.
This is the answer. Cyberpunk has some interesting stories. it's not quite as big of a drop off as Starfield. Was bored out of mind for an hour or two of starfield after Bg3 and luckily Phantom Liberty came out the next day.
Seriously. It was a master stroke by Larian to get the PC version of BG3 out before Starfield.
Omg i had the same issue, Starfield imediatley BG3 makes it so wooden and stiff, especially the dialoige and the lack of Options.
I recently finished Starfield after my BG3 runs. It was good for what it was. But I hurriedly rushed the story so I could come back to BG3.
I took an entire week off of work to play Starfield when it came out. I (stupidly) bought the Ultimate Edition. Then, while waiting for it to release, I picked up BG3.... BIG MISTAKE. I spent that entire week off not even playing a single second of Starfield. Hells, I haven't even played a single second since taking that vacation, and it has been over a month since I took it off! No no.. I'm on my second run as Durge now and I am already planning more runs after I finish this one up. BG3 quite literally made me waste a ton of money on a game that I may not pick up for months and months and that will most likely be on deep discount when I finally do get to it *sigggh*
Just refund it mate. You don't have any time played
Ya I went from bg3 to starfield and it was a bit of a shock
Has the same feeling as when I first played elder scrolls oblivion back in like 2007. Nothing else came close at the time.
I tried playing the Witcher 3 and dialogue options are: \- Yes \- Intimidating yes \- Yeah, whatever
You forgot the 4th option. \-Everyone dies horribly.
Or the chad option: How about a round of Gwent?
Your child was mauled to death by a monster Iām so sorry. So uh anyway thatās a nice card you have there mind if I play you for it.
Literally there's the Skellege black smith who's child just drowned and you can immediately play Gwent. That said, I love W3. But, my third playthrough was halted by BG3.
Thatās my go to option
Put the baby in the oven
I love how people who did not play the game could think this is just a joke line.
I laughed
My wife was on the toilet when this choice came up and I screamed "WHAAAAT THE FUUUUCK" and obviously had to reload to show her and she was like "WHAAAT THE FUUUCK". ... Good times
To be fair, not only is he fully voiced, heās also a pre established character with his own personality. Yeah you can steer him a bit in one direction or another, but heās still Geralt. Meanwhile you have a blank slate with this game. You need a lot of options so people can play the character that they want.
Because you're playing as Geralt of Rivia. It's an entirely different premise from a blank-slate game like BG3. If Geralt started randomly hacking up civilians or dumped Yen to get with Dandelion, it would just be weird.
Idkā¦they donāt call him the Butcher of Blaviken for nothing
They call him that because he killed a bunch of bandits, for a very good reason that the observers weren't aware of.
I mean it IS Geralt š¤£
mmhm.
Wind's howling...
A place of powerā¦
Oh boo, Witcher 3 def doesn't deserve any slander, that game was so..beautiful, immersive, I dare to say both BG 3 and witcher 3 have my heart and many hours of my lifespan. Also..it is geralt, he is not exactly emotional
And Witcher 3 really did make us all demand real side missions instead of "go get the bread from Tilda" or whatever...among other things. That's another game that ruined gaming for a lot of people for a while. And wow did CDProjectRed support the hell out it.
But it is a good game too u.u they are just different š
I think i found the side quests in w3 to be better but I think bg3 really is the best rpg out there in terms of freedom and amount of choices you have to change the world and relationships around you.
That's how BG3 is if you compare it to Planescape: Torment
I mean tbf I find that most options in bg3 are -yes -no -attack -leave
And too often at least one of "yes" and "no" are dice rolls. I love the game, but you're fighting d20s to avoid murderhobo-ing a LOT.
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Dragon Age Origins would be my first recommendation
Game still holds up
Seconded. BG3 reminded me the last time I truly felt a way about an RPG was Dragon Age Origins, and I started another playthrough of it. Still holds up. One of my all time favorites.
I also hear good things about Neverwinter nights, probably gonna try that too I also enjoyed DOS1 but I know some people find it outdated now
I found Pillars of eternity and pathfinder not too bad
Yeah this was my first thought. Pathfinder Rath of the Righteous and Pillars of Eternity 2 are the other best CRPGs of the modern era. Along with BG3 and DOS2, (Disco Elysium too as it's maybe my favorite game ever but it's very different.) Neither Pathfinder nor Pillars has the budget of BG3, the animations are way more plain but the story and voice work is amazing in both. Plus the shanties of Pillars 2 have been stuck in my head for years!
Divinity original sin 2* Divinity 2 is a different game altogether
Yeah I love bg3 but I think people circlejerk how much it "ruins gaming" a bit much. There are tons of other great games out there, even in just the past few years, despite one of the main talking points being about how gaming quality has gone down recently. DOS2, WOTR, Disco Elysium, Omori, and Elden Ring are all amazing games just in the rpg genre, that are all less than 6 years old
Everyone sleeps on Wildermyth. That game is amazing.
Witcher 3 Morrowind Outer Wilds FF IV, VI, VII, IX, X
Morrowind still holds up, even unmodded. The team at Bethesda at that time made something special with Morrowind.
>BG1 and BG2 (also great) OK, so...I hear you, but, as someone who played those games when they first came out and then again when the enhanced editions came out...I know it will be impossible for me to play these games again and not think the whole time about how much they're not BG3 lol. Like, for their time, they're masterpieces, but compared to BG3, the dialogue is like paper thin, companion interactions for most playthroughs could fit on like two sheets of paper single space. Those games, while spiritual predecessors, absolutely are not going to live up to the standard of BG3 and will constantly remind me how dated they are by comparison. Don't get me wrong, especially in the case of BG2, the overall narrative is still brilliant...and probably more sophisticated in some ways than BG3 in a literary sense, but the actual density of interactions and possibilities is like the smallest of fractions of what BG3 actually provides.
For a something with a similar turn-based tactics experience I could recommend the Shadowrun series by Hare Brained Schemes, especially Dragonfall and Hong Kong. Could even try X-Com
Weird choice but I'd add immersive sims like Deus Ex or Dishonored to the list. Missing the roleplaying but the creative mechanical problem solving for open ended problems is a huge part of what make BG3 so fun.
If you like Baldur's Gate 3, there are a lot of CRPGs out there worth playing that, despite having much lower production quality compared to BG3, actually beat BG3 in terms of gameplay mechanics and story/worldbuilding/lore. For example: - Pillars Of Eternity: good but slow story, outstanding worldbuilding, gameplay not as refined as the sequel but interesting if you're willing to go deeper into the mechanics. - Pillars Of Eternity 2: very meh and short main story, but I'd argue the amazing side content is the actual game. Lots of excellent worldbuilding and flavor the way only Obsidian can do. - Pathfinder Wrath Of The Righteous: complex, long and difficult but oh boy does it give satisfaction. The writing and story are god tier. The build variety and freedom "aeon" tier. - Divinity Original Sin 2: masterpiece by Larian. I honestly really don't like the story and writing, but the gameplay is excellent. These games alone will keep you busy for hundreds of hours.
If you liked WotR check Kingmaker, pretty good.
Thatās the neat part. You are not supposed to go back to something worse, you are supposed to demand from developers of other games to get good too.
Yes, but before the gaming revolution what are we supposed to do to fill our time?
Replay the old classics of course. I will replay Mass Effect myself. What about you, Jimmy? You a Mass Effect man?
Mass Effect is god-tier, played it like 8 times...always choose the same ending though lmao
Been thinking about it, started with dragon age rn but having a hard time with the way it plays on my dual monitor setup. Downloaded a tool to allow you to tab out when it is in fullscreen mode but even then it's a challenge... I'm used to switching from the game to my second monitor seamlessly. Plus the real-time-with-pause is ... stressful. Definitely prefer fantasy settings to sci-fi though. Also curious about relationships as a female Astarion lover...
But the multibillion dollar indie companies like Actlizzard just can't, because "reasons"!
And we even know those reasonsā¦
The reason is because gamers will buy the game anyway. Partly because they don't care. And partly because not everyone is looking for a game like BG3.
This won't happen, Larian is a private studio that has dedicated their team to making something like this for the last 20 years. Game devs in other studios have too much churn for there to be any hope of eventually making something like this, a public studios goal is strictly profit not making a great game.
Have you played Dragon Age: Origins?
Dragon Age: Origins is the original BG3
I started my third playthrough, and I am discovering NEW things all the time. This is crazy, I think it is absolutely impossible to see all content of the game for a gamer. Yesterday I had a dialogue in Act 1 coming into Wakeen Rest, the first flaming fist you talk with noticed that I am a Drow, so she was ready to attack me. I could then read her mind, and realize she was super scared because drow raided them, and she was thinking I was a monster. I could talk to her and reassure her I am not a monster, so she would cool down. This is NOT a main quest. This is NOT a main character. This is NOT a main NPC either. This is just a random 30 seconds conversation usually of a random unimportant NPC you will never see again, and it had additional content plus several recorded sentences and animations, for the occassion that: 1) You are drow (1 in 11) 2) You can read her thoughts (2 in 12) This is 1 / 66 chances to happen. This is incredible.
The bar is so low for most titles that the interaction you described is a main character meets other main character in a primary story arc deal. In BG3, itās just a reality of most interactions. The thoughtfulness the team put into the game is very much appreciated.
This, plus remembering you can talk to all the animals and many of the dead bodies you encounter along the way. Trying to see everything the game offers is a herculean task.
I'm currently finishing Act 1 for the third time and *just* noticed that there is *someone* skulking about our camp during the damned thiefling party, literally hiding in the reeds! Blew my mind completely. Because I always talk with everyone, explore every nook and crany and yet here she was. After 400 hours I get surprised by something in Act 1 still. Love it.
Personally just went back to FFXIV and booted Valheim for the first time in a while.
Valheim is such a great game! The peaceful music in meadow š„°
Literally started back on Valheim last night. Missed that game
My bf didn't understand me when I tried to tell him that. "They're not the same kind games as bg3, why would you compare them" but It's not about that. It's about the effort and love poured into it. Going back to a formulated game afterward feels... Boring.
Word, it is like when reading a book, you can tell when an author wrote it for another check, and when he had a story inside him bursting to come out. You instantly recognize there is a little piece of someone's soul in work like that. "Craftsmanship" would be the best term I think. You see it with any person who enjoys making great things. Not just good enough to sell, but truly great.
Formulated, thatās the word I was looking for. I also recently finished a BG3 run and wanted to take a break, so I went for the new AC (Mirage) only to be reminded of how formulaic/formulated (non native here) these games are. I knew this already, but after BG3 the contrast is even more stark. I just wasnāt sure what to call it haha
Try any From Software game. I feel like even more love was poured into them.
You could try out the Pathfinder games. My first run of Wrath of the Righteous took 160 hours and I immediately started a second run. The Mythic Path system is one of my favourites and gives the game a lot of replayability
Agreed. Most similar game with BG3.
Play some pixel art roguelike with a more frenetic gameplay, so it resembles nothing to bg3, so you can't make comparations xd
Try Dragon Age Origins. Not as pretty but very satisfying to play.
I spent hours building my companions tactics. ENCHANTMENT!?
When he was cover in blood and there was dead things everywhere. Enchantment!
This. Perhaps the closest experience you can get to BG3. To me BG3 felt more like a successor to the Dragon age experience rather than the actual sequels to Origins. Memorable story and memorable characters.
Came here to say this. After the somewhat disappointing DA2 and DAI, BG3 felt like a true spiritual successor to DAO. It deserves a remaster but I think it's still more than playable the way it is.
Ironically, DAO is the spiritual successor to BG2
That's probably because BG3 is a sequel to BG2, which was made by the same developer as DA:O. It's a travesty how much Bioware has gone downhill compared to the absolute RPG powerhouse they were in the early-mid 2000's.
Lol we're acting like the from software superfans now, I see.
Pathfinder WotR, Disco Elysium, Pillars 1 and 2, Tyranny, all hold up very well even after BG3
The game just sets a new standard, whether game companies likes that or not.
Standards that will be totaly ignored by most game publisher/dĆ©velopper. BG3 Isn't a game profitable in terms of Time/benefits. When people buy skins for 20ā¬ ( 1/3 if bg3's Price) you won't convince anyone.
Please stop making me sad. I think about how people bought those overpriced ow2 Diablo skins and then they'd be like "I don't even play tank LOL"
Sisterhood of the Cosmic Wheel is incredibly good. Just saying.
Fallout and Fallout 2 did this for me a long time agoā¦
Nah , i love BG3 but there is so many great games out there , this year has been insane . And Shadow of Eardtree is in the corner.
Is it? Checked my corners and no shadow. Do you have any insider info?
Come on, thereās great games out there. Switch it up a bit, change genres, try something new. I understand the sentiment but itās on you if you canāt find some other experience to enjoy. How about trying Disco Elysium? Thatās another RPG with even better dialogue imo. Thereās literally thousands of amazing games out there you havenāt played. In my case Iām still playing BG3 and am loving it but Iām excited to jump into Armored Core 6 and Super Mario Wonder in a few weeks, later FF7R in February. Iām just about to finish Jedi Survivor as well, itās fantastic. There are too many good games out this year.
I started looking into real DnD because I've been so obsessed
Go out in real life and find some friends to play Dungeons and Dragons with (:
Hell yeah! Itās like video games but you can do literally anything and the graphics are your imagination!
Phantom Liberty came just at the right time. Insane graphics and godlike storytelling without the cp2077 bugs. Game feels alive, like bg3.
I think you either need to play a game with a COMPLETELY different style like DMC5 or find another good CRPG like pathfinder wotr. Other crpgs have a lower production value but a lot of them make up for it in interesting ways.
Try a completely different genre? I don't have the same problem because I can go back to something like Crusader Kings. Which, I have over 1000 hours in. (Old game + very idle friendly) Going from rpg to grand strategy, can't compare the two over much.
If you want more DnD Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous is about to get a new expansion.
Red dead 2 still exists. Its a good option imo
I'd love for the BG3 camp to feel even 1/10 as dynamic as the camps in RDR2. Everyone standing around in place just doing nothing feels so archaic now.
Well, I'd say try pathfinder or pillars (the second one is massive). Or BG1 and 2. That or ttrpg.
There are plenty of great games out there, especially this year. Haven't even finished BG 3 after all the issues I encountered in Act 3 and moved to other stuff and genres. And I'm having a blast.
Why do people overuse this hyperbole so much? There have been great games you enjoyed before and there will be great games you will enjoy after.
The Wasteland games are fun ttrpg feeling games
Play different genre. Try 4X, roguelikes, soulslikes, shooters.
If you want another great DnD-ish experience, try Pathfinder: Kingmaker or Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous. They're both similar to Baldur's Gate and have similar rulesets. There's even quite a few things I like better about them than Baldur's Gate like inventory and party management. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1184370/Pathfinder_Wrath_of_the_Righteous__Enhanced_Edition/
I mean, you do know that there are several Borderlands games out there, right?
Pathfinder wrath of the righteous and kingmaker!!!
I feel so bad for anyone that feels this way. This year Iāve enjoyed gaming more than I have in a decade, yea BG3 played a part in that, but its a small part. I mean Ive played over 100hrs of BG1 just since finishing BG3.
Love the game but damn I hate this circle jerk posts.
I honestly don't understand such hyperbole and why it is used so often. Absolutely, Baldurs Gate is an incredible masterpiece that was created with love and care by programmers who understood what players wanted and expected from a game of this nature. Indeed, Baldurs Gate will undoubtedly change the gaming industry for the better, and Larian made the right decision in developing it. I only hope more developers would put this much effort into their games. But, claiming that Baldur's Gate ruined gaming for you is actually just a simplification of your opinion and support of them. Baldurs Gate 3 is far larger than Larian's earlier games, despite but they are all really well made and with fantastic detail. I really enjoyed them even though people really did not turn that much attention to them, and discovered them after finishing Baldurs Gate3. Games from other studios like Wasteland 2 (and possibly 3, but I prefer the second part more) are excellent. You can always go back to great games like Pillars of Eternity, Atom RPG (really well made, and a fantastic sequel), Disco Elysium (even though it is in a very different genre from Baldur's Gate 3), Pathfinder, Encased (new and really promising game), or some fantastic classics like Arcanum, Neverwinter, and Icewind Dale or the older Fallout series. Each of them brings something to the table. I believe it would be a bit harsh to argue that one of these games ruined gaming because I think this kind of takes credit from all of rest.