Unveiling Baldur's Gate 3: Unravel Infinite Possibilities in One Playthrough!

Lead writer Adam Smith revealed in a recent interview with Game Rant that it can take up to 18 playthroughs to explore every possible story variation for a single character in Baldur's Gate 3. This showcases the immense scale of the game, featuring custom and origin characters, diverging storylines, romance options, factions, and more.

Larian Studios had previously shared that Baldur's Gate 3 contains approximately 174 hours of cutscenes, which is twice the total length of all Game of Thrones seasons combined. These cutscenes are a result of the player's various story choices, permutations, and dice rolls. Additionally, Larian Studios states that an average playthrough of Baldur's Gate 3 takes between 75 and 100 hours to complete, further emphasizing the vast amount of content available in the game.

During our conversation with Smith, we discussed the different combinations in the overarching story, quest design, and characters. The development of Baldur's Gate 3 was only made possible through the collaborative efforts of everyone at Larian, who worked on every single aspect of the game. For instance, one writer focused on the different romantic possibilities within the game, which is just one aspect of the complex Baldur's Gate 3 characters. Other considerations include the choices between origin characters and custom characters, factions, and more. When testing these origin characters and their various combinations, Smith realized that...

"...I had to play the game 18 times just to test every possible story path for one of them."

Permutations of all kinds are encompassed in this, including the romances between companions in Baldur's Gate 3, their choices in the main storyline, their interactions with various factions throughout the game, and much more. While some of these variations can be witnessed through save scumming or partial playthroughs, experiencing the entirety of the game in a single playthrough is practically impossible due to the immense divergence in the story. It may appear overwhelming, but it's highly, highly improbable that anyone would dedicate approximately 1800 hours to complete all 18 playthroughs. However, this does offer a significant advantage to players as each permutation contributes to a unique and personalized gaming experience. "By the time you reach the ending, you've told your own story," Smith said.

Baldur's Gate 3 offers an impressively high replay value, and much of it relies on the player's engagement with the game. With the full release approaching, Smith advises players to explore the vast interconnected world, diverse systems, engaging characters, and numerous possibilities available in Baldur's Gate 3.

The game will be available for PC on August 3rd and for PS5 on September 6th.