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If there existed a “correct” way of making a roleplaying game, Baldur’s Gate III is probably it. It tells a remarkable story, featuring characters of depth in a world replete with fantasy tropes that avoid presenting as hackneyed and stale—despite the continued fan proliferation of the world in which it’s set. The combat system is robust; choices made before and after spilling blood are always compelling and occasionally moving. Indeed, the extent to which things are made possible and open to experimentation is what sets Baldur’s Gate III apart from, not nearly, but all of its contemporaries.

If player immersion is found in freedom, then based on its roleplaying scope alone, Baldur’s Gate III is one of the best games ever made.


Baldur’s Gate III uses Dungeons and Dragons’ 5th edition ruleset. As such, the game comes stock with (mostly) set character progression for all classes. It’s important to note that this limitation is necessary, as Baldur’s Gate remains a Dungeons and Dragons intellectual property. However, character progression still provides you agency over selecting the new skills you want to learn, the feats you’d like to choose, and how you allocate acquired ability points for characters. Even then, nothing is entirely set in stone, as you can re-spec or multiclass as you desire.

Maybe you want to be a bard? Maybe a bard who’s also a ranger? Maybe even a bard who’s also a ranger who becomes a barbarian? And so on. The multiclassing choices are only limited by the amount of levels you can gain—this number currently rests at 12. And there are also 12 character classes…do with that what you will.

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Like developer Larian’s Divinity: Original Sin series, Baldur’s Gate III uses turn-based combat. This is a departure from the original games, but as it is Larian’s expertise, it is welcomed. Order of combat is usually secured by a character’s initiative rating. Assuming you start combat to begin with (stealthier folks may sneak attack a room to death without entering turn-based mode), you’ll choose spells via a radial menu that’s replenished every time the character fully rests at camp. And you’ll want to rest often because many of the story’s characters are developed at the campsite. Battles progress like you would expect, with each class bringing something useful for winning—some support, some attack, and some throw spells. Balancing your party to account for all scenarios possible is recommended, especially on harder difficulties (three difficulty options), as combat can be punishing. Particularly in a battle’s opening, you can get swarmed quickly.

Aside from traditional turn-based combat, the game within the game is really about rolling dice. Without tangentially explaining how Dungeons and Dragons operates, at a base level, game progression hinges on succeeding or failing dice rolls. The die numbers read 1-20; the difficulty of the situation (self-evidently determined [e.g., a bank vault will naturally be harder to break into than a lockbox]) sets the difficulty number. The player must roll a die at or over that number to pass the check; if they roll below the number required, they fail. And it’s not all bank vaults. Dice rolls extend to nearly every playstyle lane—shooting arrows, throwing magic, playing music, intimidating gnomes, seducing half-elfs, and saving companions. The RNG component of this will no doubt frustrate you at times, but some of the finer moments are born from failure.

My advice: embrace that failure.

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The dice can be loaded too. Depending on how you progress your characters, numbers will automatically be added to your die based on your characters’ proficiencies and expertise. As an example, if I need to intimidate a troll, I could get lucky and pass the roll check. Or, if I have added points to my charisma rating, I’ll naturally get a boost to my roll on this check. If I roll 11 and I need 14, but I received +6 based on my skills, I still succeed on the roll despite rolling 11 (17>14).

The above makes Baldur’s Gate III a meta-game within the actual game. There is always more going on than can be accounted for. And because of that, there’s no way to play the same way twice without saving thousands of times and reloading. Everything feels new and living.


Baldur’s Gate III opens by having you create a character—our first introduction to Larian’s gift of nearly absolute autonomy. Aside from customization of the standard fare (brown hair/blonde, beard/no beard, etc.), you’ll have the option of choosing one of 11 different races owning 31 subraces. Furthermore, the player will also select one of 12 unique character classes that combined contain an additional 46 subclasses, all of which feel viable. You may skip customization and opt to play as any of the seven origin characters that, if not selected, can potentially be recruited later.

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I have never encountered an RPG that graced me with this many different playstyles.


Set 120 years after the events of Baldur’s Gate II, the game functions as something akin to a soft reboot. Lore, locations, and some characters may return, and previous knowledge may enrich your gratification. Still, there is no requirement of having played the series’ progenitors to enjoy the content held within.

The story opens with the protagonist attempting to wrest control of a crashing alien ship. Your character, along with future party members, have been taken captive by Mind Flayers—a version of Lovecraftian, eldritch horrors. The ship rips through multiple realms before eventually crashing into the land of Faerûn, where the player escapes. All is not well, however, as the Mind Flayers have infected your brain with a parasite, the removal of which serves the role of the plot’s MacGuffin. And thus, your tale begins.

And, oh, what a tale it is...

Your introduction to Faerûn is swiftly placed in contrast to most video games. There is very little hand-holding or guidance. That’s simply not Larian’s intent. You’re given the tools to progress, to interact with the world, to try things out, succeed, or fail. As an example, if an encountered wall is too high, stack boxes and climb over it. Or pick the lock at the gate. Or knock the gate down. Or teleport over it. Or simply ignore it altogether. Given the sheer amount of tools at your disposal, it’s hard to account for how one might deal with that wall. Or that chest. Or that boss. Or that…lover. You get what I’m saying here, right?

In the past, RPGs’ freedom in progression has typically been measured in the macro. And Baldur’s Gate III cares a lot about that too.

But it also cares about how you get over that wall.


Baldur’s Gate III is one of the greatest video games of recent years; moreover, it will rank among the truly elite for perhaps decades to come. Even for fans who aren’t typically attracted to the genre, there’s still so much contained within that it’s difficult to imagine there not being something for someone.

The story is immense, the characters are excellent, the progression is satisfying, and the options feel boundless. It’s one of the first games I’ve encountered where I felt that only my imagination was limiting me. And that’s a magnificent feeling.

And Baldur’s Gate III is a magnificent game.


Note: While players have reported bugs, particularly in Act III, this was not my experience. I suffered only one crash and one levitating helmet.