Baldur's Gate Baldur's Gate 3 Early Access Thread [GAME RELEASED, GO TO NEW THREAD]

[Cryomancer]

A "proper" RPG with they/them pronounces, queer galore, muh rapefugees quest trope, twitch integration, lots of mocapped sex… Good one, rusty.

Who cares? All that matters for him is to be turn based.

It's actually not very noticeable.

It is. Not even beamdog putted woke BS into char creation and they have a companion as awful as Aatarion(Hexxat)

 

[Non-Edgy Gamer]

It is. Not even beamdog putted woke BS into char creation and they have a companion as awful as Aatarion(Hexxat)

*Put. And I said noticeable. It not being there would have nothing to do with noticeability, since it wouldn't exist. ESLdex strikes again.

 

[Maxwell's Demon]

"Identity" is more overt, but it's still muted compared to games like Space Wreck, where they give you a small lecture in gender theory if you hover over the tranny option.

Don't give Larian any more ideas!

 

[Non-Edgy Gamer]

Btw, Larian's model designers seem to suffer from the allergy to shapely female bosoms that many modern developers seem to suffer from.

 

[Reinhardt]

Btw, Larian's model designers seem to suffer from the allergy to shapely female bosoms that many modern developers seem to suffer from.

imagine default human laquanda trying to seduce shadowheart with twerk. it's just sad...
i hope there is such option in the game and shadowheart will laugh at you. swen, you still have time to make it happen.

 

[Larianshill]

Wait. The one in the box, the one in the Underdark with the Drow... Which one would be the third?

Isn't there one near the gnoll cave? Maybe it's a false memory, and I just opened the flask there.

 

[Reinhardt]

so 3 beholders in starting zone...

 

[Larianshill]

You don't know the difference between beholders and spectators?

 

[NecroLord]

Spectators are weak sauce.
Bring the real OG Beholders, Eye Tyrants and Hive Mothers...

 

[Reinhardt]

You don't know the difference between beholders and spectators?

don't remember any floating eyes. just use shield.

 

[AwesomeButton]

, valid criticism about mechanics will become moot if you experience a grand narrative

Disgusting storyfag.

I think we cant overlook the significance of the narrative in any RPG. It does matter and can ameliorate weak mechanics

For example take the Czech RPG Inquisitor, it had some bad frustrating combat mechanics like the mandatory spamming of healing potions ...and I really mean spamming of healing potions. But the dark narrative was absolutely compelling and the annoying combat became irrelevant

So the salient question is " how much does narrative matter "? I would say its critical to enjoyment and its the main overarching reason why you progress on the main narrative?

Planescape: Torment being the one exception, of course.

When there is a demand, supply will emerge to satisfy it:

Spoiler

 

[Tuco Benedicto Pacifico]

Wait. The one in the box, the one in the Underdark with the Drow... Which one would be the third?

Isn't there one near the gnoll cave? Maybe it's a false memory, and I just opened the flask there.

The one in the gnoll-sieged cave is the same one locked in the box. So yeah, there are two.

 

[NecroLord]

No.
The spectator with a sense of humor was summoned by a drow to guard a chest in the sahuagin City of Caverns, not the Underdark.

 

[Tyranicon]

, valid criticism about mechanics will become moot if you experience a grand narrative

Disgusting storyfag.

I think we cant overlook the significance of the narrative in any RPG. It does matter and can ameliorate weak mechanics

For example take the Czech RPG Inquisitor, it had some bad frustrating combat mechanics like the mandatory spamming of healing potions ...and I really mean spamming of healing potions. But the dark narrative was absolutely compelling and the annoying combat became irrelevant

So the salient question is " how much does narrative matter "? I would say its critical to enjoyment and its the main overarching reason why you progress on the main narrative?

Planescape: Torment being the one exception, of course.

When there is a demand, supply will emerge to satisfy it:

The problem with tying RPGs to a narrative is that having good writers is an especially rare thing. It's much easier making a good RPG in mechanics, than a good RPG with a good narrative.

Oh a philosophical/design standpoint, you could say that the RPG genre and narrative directly oppose each other.

We like to throw around planescape torment, but that's because it's the only one where the quality of the writing was strong enough that we could justify overlooking its many, many faults. And Disco Elysium too, depending on whether you consider it a RPG.

Which, of course, leads back to the crux of the problem. Narrative will always try to determine gameplay.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Narrative will always try to undermine gameplay.

Fixed

 

[FriendlyMerchant]

, valid criticism about mechanics will become moot if you experience a grand narrative

Disgusting storyfag.

I think we cant overlook the significance of the narrative in any RPG. It does matter and can ameliorate weak mechanics

For example take the Czech RPG Inquisitor, it had some bad frustrating combat mechanics like the mandatory spamming of healing potions ...and I really mean spamming of healing potions. But the dark narrative was absolutely compelling and the annoying combat became irrelevant

So the salient question is " how much does narrative matter "? I would say its critical to enjoyment and its the main overarching reason why you progress on the main narrative?

Planescape: Torment being the one exception, of course.

When there is a demand, supply will emerge to satisfy it:

The problem with tying RPGs to a narrative is that having good writers is an especially rare thing. It's much easier making a good RPG in mechanics, than a good RPG with a good narrative.

Oh a philosophical/design standpoint, you could say that the RPG genre and narrative directly oppose each other.

We like to throw around planescape torment, but that's because it's the only one where the quality of the writing was strong enough that we could justify overlooking its many, many faults. And Disco Elysium too, depending on whether you consider it a RPG.

Which, of course, leads back to the crux of the problem. Narrative will always try to determine gameplay.

Narrative is also a problem because it is often contrary to the idea of roleplaying. Surely the game developers can find some other random hero to save the world if I instead opt to spend my time looting dungeons for treasure and building a financial/military empire (as gygax intended) instead of doing their stupid main questline. The last two decades of rpg development at least are the throes of developers who lost sight of what an rpg is supposed to be; a fantasy life/world simulator with heavy graverobbing simulator elements where your characters goes on adventures to enrich themselves as they see fit in the sandbox world.

 

[Tyranicon]

, valid criticism about mechanics will become moot if you experience a grand narrative

Disgusting storyfag.

I think we cant overlook the significance of the narrative in any RPG. It does matter and can ameliorate weak mechanics

For example take the Czech RPG Inquisitor, it had some bad frustrating combat mechanics like the mandatory spamming of healing potions ...and I really mean spamming of healing potions. But the dark narrative was absolutely compelling and the annoying combat became irrelevant

So the salient question is " how much does narrative matter "? I would say its critical to enjoyment and its the main overarching reason why you progress on the main narrative?

Planescape: Torment being the one exception, of course.

When there is a demand, supply will emerge to satisfy it:

The problem with tying RPGs to a narrative is that having good writers is an especially rare thing. It's much easier making a good RPG in mechanics, than a good RPG with a good narrative.

Oh a philosophical/design standpoint, you could say that the RPG genre and narrative directly oppose each other.

We like to throw around planescape torment, but that's because it's the only one where the quality of the writing was strong enough that we could justify overlooking its many, many faults. And Disco Elysium too, depending on whether you consider it a RPG.

Which, of course, leads back to the crux of the problem. Narrative will always try to determine gameplay.

Narrative is also a problem because it is often contrary to the idea of roleplaying. Surely the game developers can find some other random hero to save the world if I instead opt to spend my time looting dungeons for treasure and building a financial/military empire (as gygax intended) instead of doing their stupid main questline. The last two decades of rpg development at least are the throes of developers who lost sight of what an rpg is supposed to be; a fantasy life/world simulator with heavy graverobbing simulator elements where your characters goes on adventures to enrich themselves as they see fit in the sandbox world.

Talking about this makes me think I'm on the right track.

I'm currently in the middle of a long experiment where there are "main" protagonists... but they're not the player. The player is just some dude in the background trying to run a brothel, or off being a vampire crime lord.

When your plot barely concerns the player, you get a lot more flexibility in how you approach gameplay. Kind of like the TES games where you can ignore the main plot, with the added bonus that the Nereverine/Dragonborn is still off doing their thing, and every once in a while you bump into them.

 

[AwesomeButton]

That's just "Sid Meier's Pirates!" + base-building and economy like Patrician 3.

I'm not criticizing. One of my favorite RPGs is Railroad Tycoon II

 

[The_Mask]

base-building and economy like Patrician 3

If every game had base building like Patrician 3, the world would be a better place.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

base-building and economy like Patrician 3

If every game had base building like Patrician 3, the world would be a better place.

Imagine how mind scatteringly awesome the world would be if every game had Yakuza style fistfights and barbarians.

 

[Stokowski]

Do graphic design schools teach people to use this specific color palette for fantasy settings? Why do all of these "liberal" fantasy games look like this now?

Blame French architecture.
Then Italian.
And probaly Austrian for good measure.

I think the architecture is less of a problem than the wildly inappropriate flora. Is this Baldurs Gate or Brynnlaw?

 

[Swen]

Why are you autistic phags complaining about the architecture now?

Look at the poverty style of the old BG city:

New BG city looks better and there's 100 years between them.

 

[Dadd]

Do graphic design schools teach people to use this specific color palette for fantasy settings? Why do all of these "liberal" fantasy games look like this now?

Blame French architecture.
Then Italian.
And probaly Austrian for good measure.

I think the architecture is less of a problem than the wildly inappropriate flora. Is this Baldurs Gate or Brynnlaw?

The entirety of the picture is revolting to look at.

 

[Desiderius]

Imagine growing up in the midst of this:



and deciding to Californicate yourselves instead.

Sad.

 

[frajaq]

I know the game is not released yet but I have to ask, did Larian do any sales/discounts while the game has been on EA?