I’m still writing aboutBaldur’s Gate 3seven months after it was released because it’s taking meforeverto finish it. Well, that, and also because it’s a great, thought-provoking game that I love writing about and people love reading about. But mostly because I’m still playing it. I think it’s a big deal that I haven’t given up yet, asa known quitter– I’ll DNF anything, for any reason, even if I’m having a good time with it.
I haven’t even finishedLike A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, and Ilovethat game.
But I’ve put so much into Baldur’s Gate 3, and I’m dying to know how all my choices will tie together at the end. Despite a ton of hurdles involvingswitching platforms,losing my saves, andstarting and giving up on a co-op campaign, I’m still here, grinding my way through the third act, determined to get the payoff everybody says is so worth it. But man, am I intimidated by this game. Well, to be more precise, I’m intimidated by how many huge fights I seem to have gotten myself into.
Spoilers for act three of Baldur’s Gate 3.
Narratively, it makes sense that the third act is where I’ll be fighting the big baddies. I picked this lot for myself, because I’m an Oath of Vengeance Paladin, which meansall the bad guys have to die. But my god, there are alotof baddies. Because I’m intent on helping all my companions reach self-actualisation, I’ve found myself obligated over and over to get into very difficult situations.
I have tomass murder Sharrans for Shadowheart. I have to re-kill a dragon because of Wyll. I have to fight a devil for Lae’zel. I have to kick Gortash’s butt for Karlach. I have to save Minsc for Jaheira, I have to kill Cazador for Astarion, and I have to get the Crown of Karsus for Gale. Everybody needs help with something in the third act, and I’m constantly flinging myself into dangerous situations in the name of friendship.
And of course, there’s the main quest. Killing Gortash means having to take down the Steel Watchers, which is a whole agonising thing in itself, and to achieve the best outcome I also had to dothe whole Iron Thronelevel, which is as crazy-making as it was fulfilling. Killing Orin means having to take down the Murder Tribunal, while she’sholding one of my friends hostageand mucking up my plans. Then there’s the Nether Brain.
My point is, there’s too much. The first act of the game felt more exploratory, building out the world and the story, and the second was where combat started intensifying, but the third act is maybetooaction-packed. Everywhere I look, there’s a fight to be had, and it’s often a big one that takes ages. Every time I get stuck on a tough battle, I find myself putting the game down for a week or so to play something else, otherwise I’ll get frustrated and burnt out. If there were just a couple of tough boss battles, this would be tolerable, but there areso many, and I have no choice but to do them to get the outcome I want.
Logically, I understand why the game’s last act is like this, but that doesn’t make it feel any better. I don’t want to give up on Baldur’s Gate 3 when I know I’m so close to the end, but it’s an uphill grind to get there. My favourite part of the game is the story, not the combat, and to have to do so much fighting to resolve disparate storylines feels worse than I thought it would. The game’s last act has forced me to slow down much more than I’d like. I’m still going to finish it, mind you, but I’m going to complain the whole time.
Baldur’s Gate 3
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Baldur’s Gate 3 is the long-awaited next chapter in the Dungeons & Dragons-based series of RPGs. Developed by Divinity creator Larian Studios, it puts you in the middle of a mind flayer invasion of Faerûn, over a century after the events of its predecessor.
