Lead writer on Baldur's Gate 3 describes working under Bioware's "shadow"

Baldurs gate 3
(Image credit: Larian Studios)

Baldur's Gate 3's lead writer, Adam Smith, has described what it was like carrying on the legacy of BioWare's previous Baldur's Gate titles. 

In a recent interview with our sister site, PC Gamer, and while talking about the character Jaheira, Smith praised Bioware's work with the original games and went on to talk about the pressure of taking on the Baldur's Gate mantle and series.

Making Baldur's Gate 3, was akin to being on the "shoulders of giants", said Smith, as Larian Studios took over the established series from Bioware. He went on to say that working on Baldur's Gate 3 with that legacy in mind felt like "such a big shadow". It's a revealing window into the concept of taking over an existing and high-profile game series, and Smith's description and discussion of the work behind the game clearly show the emotions involved. You can see the full interview below as part of one of PC Gamer's 'Chat Log' video series.

Gaining the approval of those who had worked on the first two games more than twenty years ago was also a big deal for Smith: "It means a lot whenever I see anybody who was even vaguely associated with the original games being pleased...we hope we did them proud," he says.

We found Baldur's Gate 3 to be a roaring success and a brilliant manifestation of Dungeons & Dragons in video game form. In his review, TRG Editor-in-Chief Jake Tucker described the game as "a fine contender for one of the best video game RPGs ever made. It’s the most ambitious RPG out there, and the painstakingly accurate rendition of Dungeons & Dragons will delight fans."

To see where Baldur's Gate 3 sits among its genre companions, take a look at our best RPGs guide. And, if you're after more tabletop action, then check out our picks for the best board games and the best classic board games available right now.

Rob Dwiar
Managing Editor, TechRadar Gaming

Rob is the Managing Editor of TechRadar Gaming, a video games journalist, critic, editor, and writer, and has years of experience gained from multiple publications. Prior to being TechRadar Gaming's Managing Editor, he was TRG's Deputy Editor, and a longstanding member of GamesRadar+, being the Commissioning Editor for Hardware there for years, while also squeezing in a short stint as Gaming Editor at WePC just before joining TechRadar Gaming. He is also a writer on tech, gaming hardware, and video games but also gardens and landscapes, combining the two areas in an upcoming book on video game landscapes that you can back and pre-order now.

Read more
The Blades of Fire key art.
MercurySteam CEO discusses upcoming new IP Blades of Fire: 'We love third person action adventure games and we wanted to revisit the genre'
Avowed
Avowed is a captivating journey through a dreamlike fantasy world that I simply can’t get enough of
A screenshot of the party members from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 blends Western gaming sensibilities with JRPG panache in 2025’s weirdest role-playing game
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
BioWare has quietly laid off long-time Dragon Age devs as it downsizes the studio and turns its focus to Mass Effect 5
Baldur's Gate 3
Don't panic! Baldur's Gate 3 players on PS5 who were affected by the accidental release of Patch 8 can fix their game using this easy solution
A Primordia vista in Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition
10 years later, Xenoblade Chronicles X Definitive Edition still has one of gaming’s best open worlds, but is it truly definitive?
Latest in PC Gaming
Playing games on the Razer Handheld Dock Chroma without an external display.
The Razer Handheld Dock Chroma offers Steam Deck owners a premium design and, of course, plenty of RGB
Image of Grand Theft Auto 6 promotional art and Corsair's PC cases
GTA 6 could reach PCs in early 2026 according to Corsair – but I'm already sick of waiting
An angry PC Gamer sat at their desk looking unhappy
Can’t buy an Nvidia RTX 5080 or 5090 GPU due to stock shortages? If you were hoping GeForce Now might provide a good alternative, we’ve got some bad news
Steam Deck controls close up
Steam Deck fans, you're in for a good one - AMD's FSR 3 frame generation is now available on Valve's handheld thanks to a new Decky plugin
NVIDIA GeForce NOW
Have RTX 5090 and 5080 stock rumors spooked PC gamers? Nvidia GeForce Now is facing high demand, with many plans now unavailable
Steam scam alert.
Watch out, this convincing Steam scam could risk your entire game library
Latest in News
A collage of Ellie and Joel in The Last of Us season 2
The Last of Us season 2's new trailer teases a huge showdown between Bella Ramsey's Ellie and Pedro Pascal's Joel, but the big moment I'm waiting for is still being held back
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max REVIEW
New iPhone 17 Air leak may have revealed some key specs – and how it compares to the iPhone 17 Pro Max
Gaming with AI
I asked Gemini to play a text-based adventure game with me and the AI whisked me away to a word-based fantasy
Apple iPhone 16 Review
Three iPhone 17 model dummy units appear in a hands-on video leak
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge on display the January 22, 2025 Galaxy Unpacked event.
New Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge may have revealed some key details – including its price
Quordle on a smartphone held in a hand
Quordle hints and answers for Monday, March 10 (game #1141)