Baldur's Gate 3 senior dev discusses players' feelings towards Act 3 'this shift is something that's challenging to overcome'

Baldur's Gate 3 companion Astarion
(Image credit: Larian Studios)

In a recent interview, Anna Guxens, senior RPG designer at Larian Studios, discussed the separation of each act in Baldur's Gate 3 and said that it's understandable if some players don't like Act 3.

Baldur's Gate 3 has made a name for itself as many players' game of the year in 2023. However, many don't look upon Act 3 with as much favor. Act 3 in this lengthy RPG is where many of the choices across the game come together; this means that depending on how you've played so far and what decisions you've made, you can have quite a different experience. 

"Each act has its own flavor," Guxens said in an interview with GameReactor. "Act 2 specifically has a very strong closing moment that just shuts down a whole era of it, and then starting off in Act 3, especially if you have so many hours running in the rest of the game, can feel like a much different tone and very drastically changing, right?"

I think it's valid because some people enjoy the tone of Act 3 the most, and some people enjoy the tone of Act 2 the most. I understand how this shift is something that's challenging to overcome especially, but give it a chance; it's something that we'd be mindful of moving forward as well as just seeing how we handle this tone shift so that things are less drastic."

Several players have also complained about the poor performance in Act 3 compared to other parts. "If they removed some enemies, fixed a couple more bugs, and stopped it from being so depressing, it would be great," says one Reddit user. "Anyone who loves Act 3 is a masochist and shouldn’t be trusted."

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Elie Gould
Features Writer

Elie is a Features Writer for TechRadar Gaming, here to write about anything new or slightly weird. Before writing for TRG, Elie studied for a Masters at Cardiff University JOMEC in International Journalism and Documentaries – spending their free time filming short docs or editing the gaming section for their student publications. 

Elie’s first step into gaming was through Pokémon but they've taken the natural next step in the horror genre. Any and every game that would keep you up at night is on their list to play - despite the fact that one of Elie’s biggest fears is being chased.