Larian Studios, known for games like Baldur’s Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin, has announced that it will no longer work on Dungeons & Dragons games. The studio will no longer create content for Baldur’s Gate 3, including DLCs, expansions, or a sequel (Baldur’s Gate 4).
During a talk at the Game Developers Conference (GDC), Swen Vincke, the founder and CEO of Larian, announced that the company’s focus is on creating new and innovative experiences rather than DLCs and expansions. Vincke emphasized that while Baldur’s Gate has been significant for Larian, he believes it’s time for the studio to move on, leaving the series’ future in Wizards of the Coast’s hands (Thanks Eurogamer).
According to Vincke, the focus is on achieving a sense of joy for players with every game they create, seeking to ensure that this approach will result in greater success through positive word-of-mouth recommendations. I feel like almost every studio wants to make a good game, but I can see where Vincke is coming from.
“Baldur’s Gate will always have a warm spot in our heart. We’ll forever be proud of it, but we’re not gonna continue in it. We’re not gonna make new expansions, which everybody is expecting us to do. We’re not gonna make Baldur’s Gate 4, which everyone is expecting us to do. We’re gonna move on – we’re gonna move away from D&D and start making a new thing. I’m saying it here because we have a forum, and we get bombarded by people that expect us to do these things, but that’s not for us. It’s gonna be up to Wizards of the Coast – it’s their IP – to find somebody to take over the torch. We did our job.”
Swen Vincke
This philosophy is a lot more than what he’s saying. Right now, the industry trend is to take an existing franchise and heavily monetize it. This is with DLC, expansions, and microtransactions. This would be all right, but normally, if the game does poorly because it’s not made well, the staff are laid off or fired to compensate for the profit shortfall. Vincke openly criticized this trend, advocating for a slower pace of development that focuses on improving the overall quality of games rather than continuously generating more revenue.
The future of Baldur’s Gate 3 might not include more updates, but there’s a buzz about Larian’s upcoming project. Vincke’s hints suggest a new IP may be something entirely different, but I’d imagine Sci-Fi is the next step. Larian’s track record with the Divinity: Original Sin games has solidified their reputation for making immersive RPGs. Sci-fi is the other side of the coin that Medieval Fantasy is on.
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