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

[Vic]

They should either delay the game or launch a few weeks early.

No point going toe to toe with Starfield, arguably the most hyped game this year, if not the decade.

With Starfield releasing Sep. 6th, it's quite bold of Swen to try and steal the start a week early... but not as suicidal as CDPR dropping Phantom Liberty twenty days after it.

which one has more hype behind it currently Cyberpunk or Starfield? Certainly not BG3

 

[Jackpot]

They did kind of shoot themselves in the foot marketing-wise, huh?
Early access released so long ago that any hype it's built is long gone, and the release itself is going to be massively upstaged in the general public by Starfield a week later.

I guess they've already made their money with people buying early access though, right?

 

[Gargaune]

which one has more hype behind it currently Cyberpunk or Starfield? Certainly not BG3

They're both bigger "brands" than BG3 today on the back of their studio pedigrees and marketing budgets, let's not forget some folks have been reluctant to accept Larian's title as a AAA production altogether. Swen's making a good call trying to get out in front, though it's very close to Starfield's release date, I agree that it might be a smart move to crack the whip and bring the schedule up mid-August. BG3's target demographic wouldn't necessarily find itself completely inside of Starfield's much larger customer base, but the black hole that will be the marketing run up to Bethesda's release may limit Larian's wider reach.

But there's another important factor here, it's not just the competition but also that "back to school" window that Larian probably don't wanna miss on. You go early to mid-August, you might find tons of potential customers aren't paying attention from their beachside towels, you know? Release dates are complicated affair.

As for between the two big dogs, I'd give it to Starfield. First, Phantom Liberty's an expansion versus Todd's First Game in Eight Years™, second, it's an expansion to a nearly three year-old game that did not enjoy the best reception the first time around. I think CDPR made a bad call with this release date, they should've gone for the beginning of October. But there's no changing that now, slapping PL with a delay would hearken back CBP's protracted release... and all the baggage that went with it.

 

[Vic]

I can already see the youtube headlines “disastrous launch” “the rise and fall of BG3” “Todd claims another victim”

 

[Jackpot]

I can already see the youtube headlines “disastrous launch” “the rise and fall of BG3” “Todd claims another victim”

Baldur's Gate 3: How NOT to Release a Game
Runtime 2:13:38
Released July 20th 2025
Views 1.5M

"What was the first time you heard about Baldur's Gate 3? If you're a gamer like me, it was probably some discussion or footage of the early access build. And when did you see that footage? Probably around the release right? A few months or a year? Or more likely it was in 2020 when the early access actually released. Now let me ask you a second question. When was the first time you saw people playing the full game? At release, right? Well - *gets interrupted by montage of Starfield*. Yeah. So maybe not. Today we're going to be looking into Baldur's Gate 3, and why the third entry in a classic and beloved franchise made by a team with experience, money, and a history of quality games, had a release that was so...forgettable. *intro plays*"

 

[Cryomancer]

Launching week before Starfield, ohboy.

Two different target audiences. I mean, Sawyer said in GDC that there was little to no overlap in Larian audience and Pillars audience.

IDK how SF will impact BG3 sales. IMO will impact a bit but would't be like Elex 2 which launched close to Elden Ring. I don't get why PB decided to do it. Why?

Lol, amerijank like bethesda crap has zero chance against my game.

IS the opposite. More action based games tends to outsell turn based games. Seems like the "marketcap" for turn based RPG's is between 5 to 10 million, by combining DOS2 total sales with Pillars and Pathfinder Kingmaker + WoTR. Meanwhile, the marketcap for action RPG's is much bigger. Elden Ring alone got over 20 million copies sold despite not being on sale ever and having high requirements.

Even in the past, Baldur's Gate 1/2 got much more popularity than SSI games exactly due it being RtWP. Probably most RPG inthusiasts in PC at least have it in his backlog, now the 90s TURN BASED AD&D adaptations, only few grognards like Myself did checked and played Dark Sun : Sattered Lands and wake of the ravager. And I"m not even talking about Gold/Silver box which would be pretty hard to get used to for anyone younger than 30 yo.

 

[Child of Malkav]

"What was the first time you heard about Baldur's Gate 3? If you're a gamer like me, it was probably some discussion or footage of the early access build. And when did you see that footage? Probably around the release right? A few months or a year? Or more likely it was in 2020 when the early access actually released. Now let me ask you a second question. When was the first time you saw people playing the full game? At release, right? Well - *gets interrupted by montage of Starfield*. Yeah. So maybe not. Today we're going to be looking into Baldur's Gate 3, and why the third entry in a classic and beloved franchise made by a team with experience, money, and a history of quality games, had a release that was so...forgettable. *intro plays*"

I can already visualize this. This is disgusting to read, literally sick to my stomach. "Gamer like me", bitch you were born yesterday, shut the fuck up. Game urinalists and influencers pollute the industry.

 

[jf8350143]

which one has more hype behind it currently Cyberpunk or Starfield? Certainly not BG3

They're both bigger "brands" than BG3 today on the back of their studio pedigrees and marketing budgets, let's not forget some folks have been reluctant to accept Larian's title as a AAA production altogether. Swen's making a good call trying to get out in front, though it's very close to Starfield's release date, I agree that it might be a smart move to crack the whip and bring the schedule up mid-August. BG3's target demographic wouldn't necessarily find itself completely inside of Starfield's much larger customer base, but the black hole that will be the marketing run up to Bethesda's release may limit Larian's wider reach.

But there's another important factor here, it's not just the competition but also that "back to school" window that Larian probably don't wanna miss on. You go early to mid-August, you might find tons of potential customers aren't paying attention from their beachside towels, you know? Release dates are complicated affair.

As for between the two big dogs, I'd give it to Starfield. First, Phantom Liberty's an expansion versus Todd's First Game in Eight Years™, second, it's an expansion to a nearly three year-old game that did not enjoy the best reception the first time around. I think CDPR made a bad call with this release date, they should've gone for the beginning of October. But there's no changing that now, slapping PL with a delay would hearken back CBP's protracted release... and all the baggage that went with it.

They could always delay it to december and go for the chrismas. I'm sure Larian could find something to optimize during that several months.

Although it's too late to do it now I'm afriad.

 

[jf8350143]

Launching week before Starfield, ohboy.

Two different target audiences. I mean, Sawyer said in GDC that there was little to no overlap in Larian audience and Pillars audience.

IDK how SF will impact BG3 sales. IMO will impact a bit but would't be like Elex 2 which launched close to Elden Ring. I don't get why PB decided to do it. Why?

Lol, amerijank like bethesda crap has zero chance against my game.

IS the opposite. More action based games tends to outsell turn based games. Seems like the "marketcap" for turn based RPG's is between 5 to 10 million, by combining DOS2 total sales with Pillars and Pathfinder Kingmaker + WoTR. Meanwhile, the marketcap for action RPG's is much bigger. Elden Ring alone got over 20 million copies sold despite not being on sale ever and having high requirements.

Even in the past, Baldur's Gate 1/2 got much more popularity than SSI games exactly due it being RtWP. Probably most RPG inthusiasts in PC at least have it in his backlog, now the 90s TURN BASED AD&D adaptations, only few grognards like Myself did checked and played Dark Sun : Sattered Lands and wake of the ravager. And I"m not even talking about Gold/Silver box which would be pretty hard to get used to for anyone younger than 30 yo.

Larian's RPG is the definition of "CRPG for normies". Of course their auidences has very little overlap with actually CRPG players. And they try extra hard with BG 3 to appeal to the mainstream players. One of the first things they say in their marketing is "we have motion captured sex scenes with tons of different positions".

And Starfield is the definition of "RPG for nomies". So it will impact BG 3 big time, because they are literally targeting the exact same group of people.

 

[Vic]

Two different target audiences. I mean, Sawyer said in GDC that there was little to no overlap in Larian audience and Pillars audience.

Bethesda is bigger than both of them. Bethesda's "Skyrim in space" will be the most played game of the year. Bethesda targets literally everybody who is interested in RPGs and then some.

 

[BruceVC]

They should either delay the game or launch a few weeks early.

No point going toe to toe with Starfield, arguably the most hyped game this year, if not the decade.

With Starfield releasing Sep. 6th, it's quite bold of Swen to try and steal the start a week early... but not as suicidal as CDPR dropping Phantom Liberty twenty days after it.

Its a valid concern around initial sales figures, I am going to buy both games but not straight away

I suppose the sales departments of both companies will argue " we cant consider a competitive company's release date"

But the main point being neither company will lose sales figures, they will just be delayed as gamers buy one game before another. But fans will buy both

 

[BruceVC]

Launching week before Starfield, ohboy.

Two different target audiences. I mean, Sawyer said in GDC that there was little to no overlap in Larian audience and Pillars audience.

IDK how SF will impact BG3 sales. IMO will impact a bit but would't be like Elex 2 which launched close to Elden Ring. I don't get why PB decided to do it. Why?

Lol, amerijank like bethesda crap has zero chance against my game.

IS the opposite. More action based games tends to outsell turn based games. Seems like the "marketcap" for turn based RPG's is between 5 to 10 million, by combining DOS2 total sales with Pillars and Pathfinder Kingmaker + WoTR. Meanwhile, the marketcap for action RPG's is much bigger. Elden Ring alone got over 20 million copies sold despite not being on sale ever and having high requirements.

Even in the past, Baldur's Gate 1/2 got much more popularity than SSI games exactly due it being RtWP. Probably most RPG inthusiasts in PC at least have it in his backlog, now the 90s TURN BASED AD&D adaptations, only few grognards like Myself did checked and played Dark Sun : Sattered Lands and wake of the ravager. And I"m not even talking about Gold/Silver box which would be pretty hard to get used to for anyone younger than 30 yo.

Larian's RPG is the definition of "CRPG for normies". Of course their auidences has very little overlap with actually CRPG players. And they try extra hard with BG 3 to appeal to the mainstream players. One of the first things they say in their marketing is "we have motion captured sex scenes with tons of different positions".

And Starfield is the definition of "RPG for nomies". So it will impact BG 3 big time, because they are literally targeting the exact same group of people.

People call me a normie and Im buying both games, is that why Im a normie?

 

[Vic]

But the main point being neither company will lose sales figures, they will just be delayed as gamers buy one game before another. But fans will buy both

that's not correct. Hype and what everybody is currently playing plays a big role in what people buy. If everybody is playing BG3 and it's popular on twitch and youtube you are much more exposed and likely to buy the game. I guess it makes sense for Larian to try and get a week of hype before Starfield absolutely takes over.

 

[BruceVC]

But the main point being neither company will lose sales figures, they will just be delayed as gamers buy one game before another. But fans will buy both

that's not correct. Hype and what everybody is currently playing plays a big role in what people buy. If everybody is playing BG3 and it's popular on twitch and youtube you are much more exposed and likely to buy the game. I guess it makes sense for Larian to try and get a week of hype before Starfield absolutely takes over.

Yes but lots of gamers love both Larian and Bethesda games so they will buy both both games but at different times, so both companies will see the revenue stream for the sale

But if you dont like Bethesda games, for example, then you not ever going to buy Starfield so the release date is irrelevant. The release date of BG3 is not going to change this purchasing decision

 

[Vic]

But the main point being neither company will lose sales figures, they will just be delayed as gamers buy one game before another. But fans will buy both

that's not correct. Hype and what everybody is currently playing plays a big role in what people buy. If everybody is playing BG3 and it's popular on twitch and youtube you are much more exposed and likely to buy the game. I guess it makes sense for Larian to try and get a week of hype before Starfield absolutely takes over.

Yes but lots of gamers love both Larian and Bethesda games so they will buy both both games but at different times, so both companies will see the revenue stream for the sale

But if you dont like Bethesda games, for example, then you not ever going to buy Starfield so the release date is irrelevant. The release date of BG3 is not going to change this purchasing decision

I think most people buy games and never play them. Just look at steam achievements %. Or at the avg. gamer’s backlog. That’s because they buy it because they’ve seen it somewhere and bought it on impulse. That’s a big market imo, people who buy a game because they saw it on twitch/youtube etc.

then there are a lot of gamers who are students on a budget and can only afford one game. They absolutely will lose out on sales because of Starfield imo.

 

[jf8350143]

Launching week before Starfield, ohboy.

Two different target audiences. I mean, Sawyer said in GDC that there was little to no overlap in Larian audience and Pillars audience.

IDK how SF will impact BG3 sales. IMO will impact a bit but would't be like Elex 2 which launched close to Elden Ring. I don't get why PB decided to do it. Why?

Lol, amerijank like bethesda crap has zero chance against my game.

IS the opposite. More action based games tends to outsell turn based games. Seems like the "marketcap" for turn based RPG's is between 5 to 10 million, by combining DOS2 total sales with Pillars and Pathfinder Kingmaker + WoTR. Meanwhile, the marketcap for action RPG's is much bigger. Elden Ring alone got over 20 million copies sold despite not being on sale ever and having high requirements.

Even in the past, Baldur's Gate 1/2 got much more popularity than SSI games exactly due it being RtWP. Probably most RPG inthusiasts in PC at least have it in his backlog, now the 90s TURN BASED AD&D adaptations, only few grognards like Myself did checked and played Dark Sun : Sattered Lands and wake of the ravager. And I"m not even talking about Gold/Silver box which would be pretty hard to get used to for anyone younger than 30 yo.

Larian's RPG is the definition of "CRPG for normies". Of course their auidences has very little overlap with actually CRPG players. And they try extra hard with BG 3 to appeal to the mainstream players. One of the first things they say in their marketing is "we have motion captured sex scenes with tons of different positions".

And Starfield is the definition of "RPG for nomies". So it will impact BG 3 big time, because they are literally targeting the exact same group of people.

People call me a normie and Im buying both games, is that why Im a normie?

I'm pretty sure the majories of Codex will play both games(whether they buy it or not I can't say), and probabbly shit on both games as well.

But we aren't talking about people here on Codex. People don't pay attention to game industry will lean to buy starfield because it will have a way larger marketing campaign.

 

[BruceVC]

But the main point being neither company will lose sales figures, they will just be delayed as gamers buy one game before another. But fans will buy both

that's not correct. Hype and what everybody is currently playing plays a big role in what people buy. If everybody is playing BG3 and it's popular on twitch and youtube you are much more exposed and likely to buy the game. I guess it makes sense for Larian to try and get a week of hype before Starfield absolutely takes over.

Yes but lots of gamers love both Larian and Bethesda games so they will buy both both games but at different times, so both companies will see the revenue stream for the sale

But if you dont like Bethesda games, for example, then you not ever going to buy Starfield so the release date is irrelevant. The release date of BG3 is not going to change this purchasing decision

I think most people buy games and never play them. Just look at steam achievements %. Or at the avg. gamer’s backlog. That’s because they buy it because they’ve seen it somewhere and bought it on impulse. That’s a big market imo, people who buy a game because they saw it on twitch/youtube etc.

Fair enough, I am not considering that group which does exist. Its strange to think anyone would buy such anticipated games and not play them but that does happen. I have many unplayed games on Steam and GOG but they not as hyped as these games

But both companies will still see revenue for these examples even if they remain unplayed

 

[Vic]

But the main point being neither company will lose sales figures, they will just be delayed as gamers buy one game before another. But fans will buy both

that's not correct. Hype and what everybody is currently playing plays a big role in what people buy. If everybody is playing BG3 and it's popular on twitch and youtube you are much more exposed and likely to buy the game. I guess it makes sense for Larian to try and get a week of hype before Starfield absolutely takes over.

Yes but lots of gamers love both Larian and Bethesda games so they will buy both both games but at different times, so both companies will see the revenue stream for the sale

But if you dont like Bethesda games, for example, then you not ever going to buy Starfield so the release date is irrelevant. The release date of BG3 is not going to change this purchasing decision

I think most people buy games and never play them. Just look at steam achievements %. Or at the avg. gamer’s backlog. That’s because they buy it because they’ve seen it somewhere and bought it on impulse. That’s a big market imo, people who buy a game because they saw it on twitch/youtube etc.

Fair enough, I am not considering that group which does exist. Its strange to think anyone would buy such anticipated games and not play them but that does happen. I have many unplayed games on Steam and GOG but they not as hyped as these games

But both companies will still see revenue for these examples even if they remain unplayed

My point is more that every streamer, news site, etc. will be covering Starfield, which means very little exposure for BG3 after the initial first week, and thus less sales.

 

[Vic]

also who's gonna want to play BG3 if everybody is playing SKYRIM IN SPACE!1 Peer pressure, "influencers" and word of mouth play a huge role. Why would little Timmy play BG3, even if he really likes it, if everybody else is playing Starfield. Come on Timmy, you have to play STARFIELD if you wanna hang with us (and get a chance to sneak a peek at his hot sister when she's coming out of the shower)

 

[Non-Edgy Gamer]

Who cares? We'll see the sales figures one way or another. But just for grins:

I know that I am part of the target audience for BG3, and I have very little desire to play Starfield, especially when it's marketed as "SKYRIM IN SPACE!!!!". I like space games, but I know Bethesda games are shallow and overhyped.

Another thing: one of the bigger selling points of Skyrim was mods. There won't be any significant mods on day one. Not unless they fix some obvious bug or simple design mistake.

And just what kind of moron is going to buy a Bethesda game day one anyway? They've already burned people with buggy releases like Fallout 76.

I'm sure people will buy it, but most will probably wait a week or two. Not to say they won't be day one purchases, but I doubt many of the people who would play BG3 are going to rush to get it.

Oh, and lastly: BG3 already sold over a million copies, so there's nothing stopping more people from buying it and playing the EA.

Swen has been cucking Starfield for years by that metric.

 

[Shrimp]

Target audience or not, I feel like you people are massively overestimating how many people that are genuinely interested in playing both games - especially at launch.

 

[Non-Edgy Gamer]

Target audience or not, I feel like you people are massively overestimating how many people that are genuinely interested in playing both games - especially at launch.

I never gave any estimated sales numbers.

I'm just refuting the notion that one game will cost the other a significant portion of their sales.

And as I said, BG3 has sold over 1 million copies during Early Access alone. There are quite a few people interested.

 

[Gargaune]

They could always delay it to december and go for the chrismas. I'm sure Larian could find something to optimize during that several months.

Yeah, but then you're dealing with continued financing costs, a couple more months of operating a 400-man crew and accruing interests isn't negligible at this scale. I believe Larian are privately owned (unlike CDPR, for example), so they've got a bit more leeway, but most of these businesses tend to operate on credit. Then you have to factor in whatever pressure they might face from WotC/Hasbro, who are also in on the deal and have stockholders and earnings reports to account for.

All that aside, another thing to consider for your December suggestion is that it would also present another difficulty in being too late to make the cut for the 2023 award shows. Now, we don't really care about that around here, but it seems to be commonly accepted that scoring participation trophies at these things correlates to a sales bump, so that's another opportunity cost in the equation.

So yeah, you've got competing products, seasonal market trends and publicity opportunities, long-running financial commitments... it gets quite complicated, there's a lot of to and fro and selecting a release date is a project in and of itself.

I suppose the sales departments of both companies will argue " we cant consider a competitive company's release date"

Oh, they'd be lying through their teeth, market competition is one of the first thing that any business looks at when putting out a product.

Yes but lots of gamers love both Larian and Bethesda games so they will buy both both games but at different times, so both companies will see the revenue stream for the sale

It's still true that RPGs have long sales "tails", but the "I'm gonna buy it sooner or later" argument mostly addresses the core gamer demographic, whereas chunks of the more casual market may slip through your fingers if you don't get them while your product's fresh. Plus, when you get money is also a legitimate business concern - as an extreme example, if I recall correctly, Thief II sunk LGS despite being commercially successful, just because it wasn't commercially successful soon enough.

 

[mediocrepoet]

And they try extra hard with BG 3 to appeal to the mainstream players. One of the first things they say in their marketing is "we have motion captured sex scenes with tons of different positions".

You should really check out Codexers' mod preferences.

Anyway, I'm actually convinced that was brilliant. How else are you supposed to get prostitutes onto your company expenses without the tax authorities and auditors raising an eyebrow?

 

[Reinhardt]

just open any big thread in this subforum - half of the posts will be about romances.