Baldur's Gate 3

A classic role-playing game (CRPG) with an isometric camera, featuring interactive, immersive locations and varied gameplay. Go wherever you want, do whatever you want, and complete quests however you want. The combat system is strictly turn-based, but time moves in real-time while moving. Actions are calculated by rolling a twenty-sided die according to the rules of Dungeons & Dragons 5, but the game design does not aim to please the hardcore D&D audience, simplifying everything for newcomers. The storytelling is modernized with a wealth of cutscenes using the engine and CGI videos.

The Forgotten Realms universe includes almost all elements of classic fantasy and is rich in details. Magic of various types and elements. Varied combat with one-handed and two-handed melee weapons, bows and crossbows, hidden blades. A diversity of races (elves, dwarves, orcs, goblins, etc.) and fantasy creatures (dragons, demons, vampires, elementals). A pantheon of local gods influencing the fates and motives of the inhabitants.

Adventures unfold on the continent of Faerûn, in its warm part with picturesque meadows and dense forests, densely populated villages, and large cities. The action of Baldur's Gate 3 covers significant territories, and the player will visit various places in Faerûn, descend into the Underdark, and touch upon other dimensions. For each location, the designers have selected the right atmosphere — whether it's a seaport, a dwarven foundry, a demon dimension, or rotten swamps — everything looks authentic. Some adjustments are made by mods.

The open world is divided into large zones corresponding to the current act of the main story. All levels are handcrafted, carefully decorated, and filled with life. The Baldur's Gate itself — a city of opportunities and failures, saints and sinners — appears only in the last act. This part of the world is grand, and every corner has its own set of stories and activities, with NPCs wandering everywhere and anyone can talk to them.

The events of Baldur's Gate 3 unfold 120 years after the finale of Baldur's Gate 2: Enhanced Edition. Legends have grown around those times and the confrontation with the god Bhaal, Faerûn faces different problems, but an ancient evil rises again from the shadows and quietly disrupts what seemed to be an established cycle of things. Faerûn is once again threatened with a fall into darkness, heralded by the destructive invasion of squid-like Illithids, a high-tech race of mind flayers from another dimension.

The setup is far from large-scale events. By coincidence, the protagonist is captured by an Illithid ship, and a larva is placed in their brain. It is about to transform the hero into a mollusk with terrifying tentacles — and only by chance can they escape the ship early. With the simple motivation of "getting rid of the parasite," the story will gradually develop into an epic adventure, and the significance of the decisions made will grow to encompass all of Faerûn.

The plot of Baldur's Gate 3 cannot be clearly labeled as dark or positive, tense or emotionless. It all depends on the choices made and the acceptance (or not) of the consequences. By making one choice or another, of which there are more than 17,000, the player shapes a kind of trajectory of the story, and each playthrough will be unique: with different friends and enemies, relationships between characters, dialogues, quests, and endings. The unpredictable twists that fill the plot lead to diametrically different outcomes.

The story is so complex that even the intentional killing of companions or important NPCs will not break the gameplay. Main, side, and other quests are subtly intertwined: progressing through the story opens up secondary quests, and by completing optional tasks or discovering items, one can stumble upon an entire story arc. However, the latter can easily be missed. And all this is in addition to unique events and quests that the game provides based on the circumstances.

The narrative of Baldur's Gate 3 spans three acts and delights with its direction. Important moments of the plot and interactions between characters are presented as high-quality animated scenes, allowing for a deeper immersion into the events. As soon as one intrigue closes, another often takes its place, keeping the attention. And to see the full picture of what is happening, it is not enough to just watch — one will have to read all sources. The direction of scenes and the staging of dialogues, combined with voice acting and facial capture of actors, present a lot of text (narrative) in a more player-friendly form compared to other games in the genre.

Baldur's Gate 3 offers both ready-made heroes and the opportunity to create your own. The character editor is vast. You can choose: appearance, physical characteristics, facial and body features, personality, and backstory.

The chosen race and subrace of the hero grant unique traits and characteristics. Some see better in the dark, others heal wounds faster, some are simply physically strong, and so on. Moreover, they directly influence role-playing due to the differences in perception from other characters in Faerûn. A half-demon tiefling may be challenged to a duel where an elf is welcomed with open arms. Thus, the choice of race opens up unique story options and dialogues, making the gaming experience even more diverse.

A dozen main classes define the hero's skills and combat abilities, directly affecting the playstyle: the Tank absorbs damage, the Paladin charges into the crowd, the Bard provokes enemies, the Druid transforms into a bear, and the Wizard casts spells. There are also subclasses: they provide additional specializations and unique opportunities. The character has six main attributes (strength, dexterity, constitution, intelligence, wisdom, and charisma), one is considered primary, and the other secondary.

As you progress through Baldur's Gate 3, you will encounter various companions, who can be included in your party as per genre standards. Each character is a unique individual with a defined backstory, motivation, moral compass, skills, and abilities. This makes them an important support during checks in decision-making (you can switch to a companion in dialogue), when interacting with the surrounding world, or in combat (the check is given to the most skilled companion in this case).

You cannot gather all companions at once; some directly exclude others, or do not accept certain choices of the protagonist and will leave the party. Relationships can be influenced by completing often complex personal quests of companions. The more cohesive the party, the better, as the selection of companions will have a strong impact on the course of the story.

The gameplay of Baldur's Gate 3 follows genre canons. We move through the level as a group, immediately engaging in combat with obvious enemies, while trying to negotiate with others through influence, intimidation, or money. Along the way, we explore the level and "vacuum" the location, collecting everything into our and our companions' inventory. Items are divided by rarity and their characteristics affect one of the six basic hero parameters, significantly influencing the build by adding abilities and effects to attacks or spells.

How to deal with a specific group of enemies depends on the player's imagination; there are always several options. In combat, friends and foes perform a certain number of actions per turn, which include movement, basic attacks, special actions, and ability use. The latter can only be used a couple of times per fight, as the combat system lacks a conditional "mana bar." The engine takes into account "height position," allowing players to kick or push enemies off ledges.

Interactive objects in the level can turn the tide of battle. You can grab an oil barrel and throw it at enemies or coat your sword in oil and set it on fire, adding fire damage. This encourages the use of the environment and physics in combat, rather than just relying on tactics. Melee classes are designed with modified rules, making them no less powerful than wizards. The randomness inherent in the D&D system also looms over Baldur's Gate: any action can have both a successful outcome and a critical failure.

Recovery of strength and abilities occurs in the camp, the design of which reflects the surrounding location. If you stop in the forest, the camp embodies the forest atmosphere; if you enter a city, the camp instantly "dresses" in urban surroundings. There are no other activities in the camp besides communication, inventory management, and party control.

Baldur's Gate 3 offers a set of exciting activities. Solving puzzles and other logical tasks. Gathering resources and recipes to create potions, elixirs, weapon buffs, and other consumables. A stealth mode, always available and allowing for more efficient task completion. Completing a quest through combat, stealth, or diplomacy often yields different results, and this may come back to haunt you someday.

Progression is also standard: We defeat enemies, complete quests, explore Faerûn, and pass difficult checks — for this and much more, the whole party gains experience. The hero and companions receive the same amount of experience from all sources. Once enough is gathered, characters level up, thereby unlocking upgrade points that can be invested in attributes as well as new abilities. Dual classing is allowed. Replayability is extremely high.

The game remains role-playing, but is not overloaded with unnecessary rules for balancing difficulty; however, a couple of hours may not be enough to get used to it. The best builds for characters and individual mechanics of the game can be found in our section with guides.

Baldur's Gate 3 can be played cooperatively by a party of 2 to 4 people, creating either new unique heroes or taking from another party. Notably, gameplay does not require players to stay together; each player here is the main character and is free to do whatever they want within the game world. One can explore a dungeon, another can explore the world, and a third can create chaos in interactions with characters.

However, the cooperative mode is designed to create an experience equivalent to playing D&D with a Dungeon Master. All moves are agreed upon, and the incoming information (journal entries, mini-map, discoveries, and recipes) is shared among all players together. Each player is rewarded with "inspiration points" for actions that align with their role, allowing them to reroll in case of failure in dialogue options.

Friends can see what is happening in the game and what choices other players have made in dialogue options. They can also vote on certain decisions. The host can also retain control over dialogue options. Some scenes, such as romantic ones, will automatically be private, although they can be shared with group members.

There is an alternative "two-player" mode when both players are in the same room. The screen will be split in half, and each will play on their half. The rules remain the same as in regular cooperative play.