Baldur’s Gate III
After spending 160 hours unravelling conspiracies, setting fire to monsters and finding increasingly fancy hats for my Bard, I can now confidently say that Baldur’s Gate III is the greatest RPG I’ve ever played. If I wasn’t writing this review, I’d be rolling a brand-new character and jumping in for another hundred hours. I’ve got it bad.
It’s my dream game: the best parts of Ultima, Baldur’s Gate, Planescape: Torment, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Divinity: Original Sin. But it also does so much more than tap into the RPG greatest hits, finding a way to unite disparate philosophies like cinematic storytelling, unhinged sandbox mayhem and tabletop-style roleplaying. Yes, it says, you can have your cake and eat it too.
And boy is it absolutely massive, as deep as it is wide. Each of the three acts could be their own epic RPG, jam-packed with elaborate dungeons, strikingly memorable quests and unique stakes, supported by systems that offer a huge amount of player freedom. It is a game overflowing with crossroads, with every step conjuring up yet more paths trying to seduce you off the beaten track.
VENTURE FORTH
The opening act sees you wrestling with the revelation that you’ve been infected with a parasite – a tadpole – that will eventually transform you into a monstrous mind flayer, stripping away your identity and free will as you become an agent of the Grand Design, attempting to bring about a universe where everyone is an evil squid monster. But that initial shock quickly makes way for a free-wheeling wilderness adventure evocative of classic D&D escapades.
There’s a druid grove in peril, goblins everywhere, a mysterious swamp at its most traditional, but even so it pushes against the familiar, using things like the lurking danger – and allure – of the tadpole to keep you on your toes. It bestows you with some of the powers of a mind flayer and encourages you to use them, manipulating your allies and enemies, with the promise of even more exotic powers.
