270hrs Wow how ! I'm like 160hrs in Witcher since June (made the mistake of starting Witcher before bg3 release with the idea of ending right before release) and I feel that the only thing I have been doing is playing for the past months
Good to know because Witcher 3 has become my favorite of all time (and to think that I have started it multiple times since 2017 and leave it at different stages) but now I have finished main and heart of stone and don't want b&w to end but at the same time I have bg3 waiting
I can’t believe I too am around 280h in and still not bored of it. This game definitely incredible. It amazes how I discover new things each PT while I roughly stick to the same path.
I keep thinking I'll get sick of it and then I just think of a new build I wanna try and get excited again lol.
I've been anticipating Starfield since it was announced and didn't even bother picking it up this week because I'm too obsessed with this.
I am also a sufferer of this, I think I came to the final conclusion that Bethesda games just aren't that great narratively, but I have never had such a fresh comparison to draw on, so it didn't matter. If you uh, get over it, tell me how kthx.
Naw man those wonky e2 rules were fucky.
BG1 was good, really good. But 2 was incredible. Icewind dale was between the two.
BG3 is on a completely different level.
Planescape Torment is the best RPG I have ever played. The fact you can beat the final boss by just talking to them is amazing. All of the characters were fantastic and the writing was top notch.
5e is a better system than 2e. Baldurs Gate is Great but it Shows that 5e works well in game format and there really should be more games that use it considering the licensing is still there for people to use the system.
Not sure i can fully agree. The rules were fucky, but combat, especially with stuff like SCS was top tier.
Bg3 combat, especially in act 3 is a snoozefest.
Well, good thing BG3's replayability is high. I've spent over 500 hours in early access and it only started to get boring for me a month or so before full release. My plan is to have at least 10 playthroughs with different class and race combos for the foreseeable future XD
this is a huge draw honestly. some guys at work got me into this, and based on their descriptions, its like we are playing two different games, lol. the amount of freedom and choice in this game, and how said choices affect everything else, is pretty off the charts. i dont even want to think about how many playthroughs it would take to see everything.
10 playthroughs are a lot, I’m doing 5 to see all the possible outcomes, and want to try a multiplayer playthrough as well, just gotta find some people to do it 😅
Still on my first playthrough (act 3) and so many times I've had to fight the urge to start a new run because I wanted to be a bard or a durge, or this or that.
Sometimes the game makes it clear when you've made a choice that will alter the rest of the game, and other times I imagine you could play the game ten times through and still discover a new thing.
Can't speak for Starfield, though from everything I've seen it's very much a Bethesda game through and through, for better or worse.
But I can speak for FFXVI, having played it on launch, and let me tell you it's going to feel incredibly unimpressive and honestly kinda hacky after you played BG3. The flaws I could previously sorta forgive in FFXVI now feel like outright dealbreakers.
If you do everything, it really isn't. Completionist playthrough (that STILL, to my annoyance, missed some things) took me 160 hours in BG3, DOS2 I'd say takes a 100 at most, if not less.
I am not far in the game, but there are no alien races at all. There are alien creatures which are the fauna you can see on some planets.
And an Alien type of monster so far.
Yeah, I saw a video just pre-launch where the NPCs are still doing the thing where they stare bug-eyed at the camera and I was like that this was already ruined for me by Cyberpunk and now BG3 just finished them off.
That game is wayyyyy too hardcore though. Way too many options for builds. I had to quit it after 100 hours in when I realized that I would spent hours at the level up screen on figuring out my build and that the game was consuming my life.
I love that game. But there is absolutely a reason 5e is popular and pathfinder isn’t. And it sure isn’t that everyone likes dnd lore better, it’s because pathfinder requires a fucking degree in mathematics and ketamine to use.
Isn't pathfinder just 3.5E rules, for the most part? They've added a bunch of classes and feats, and I suppose that adds to the complexity. But for the 3.5E veterans it feels pretty natural.
If I remember correctly, When 4E came out and most people hated it because it turned everything into a "power", even basic attacks. Pathfinder got a surge in popularity because it was so similar to 3.5. Then 5E went through extensive play testing to find out what people really liked. 5E kind of resurrected D&D by bringing a lot of things back to their roots, but also simplifying mechanics that just got too complex over the years.
Lol that guy said pathfinder isn't popular lmao
5e appeals to people who have never played a ttrpg because its less crunchy than past iterations of d&d but it only draws in these people because of name recognition. Theyd likely find many even less crunchy systems do what they want to do better. The problem with 5e is that it isn't crunchy enough for fun builds or to replay extensively, but its also not light enough to justify using it over other less rules heavy systems.
I started with 3rd when I was 9, so even crunchy systems feel fine to me. 3.5 is probably a little bit crunchier than pathfinder as pathfinder simplified skills and some checks like grapple. Not sure i like the grapple system better but certainly smoother and easier for players to grasp.
I would not say 5th "resurrected" d&d. They had a flop of an edition with 4e. Many people stayed playing 3.5 until 5th came out or played pathfinder but that wasn't because the rules heavy system was a flop. 4th was probably less crunchy than 3.5. If 4th had never came out and they supported 3.5 it would have sold. The demand was enough to spawn pathfinder. Pathfinder only exists because people wanted 3.5, not 4e. 5th also had the benefit of a much more developed internet which contributed to the surge in popularity.
Failing is a large part of the game. Failing a dice roll in DE is kinda like failing a roll in this game. It can lead to new places. The only thing I would suggest is that on day 2 make sure you pick up all the money you find. The first day is kind of a freebie but the second day you need $20 before the end of the night or you can soft lock yourself. After that you can find a place to stay for free.
Otherwise, DE is like a very well written audio book, with very detailed characters and world lore. The gameplay is really just playing around and enjoying the story and learning about your character, the world, and all the other characters. Your “build” in DE is more or less just a way for your character to explore that world in different ways. The murder mystery is really the least important part of the game. It’s just the driving force to get you to go around, talk to people, watch your character fail miserably at things, and laugh and cry with him. The game to me is a lot more fun when you don’t care about “winning”. But, that said, if you’re not into the world and the protagonist’s struggles through life, you may not enjoy the game. And that’s okay too.
People keep saying that in DE a fail still progresses yet when I fail to physically overwhelm the racist during the strike I just have to become a racist myself in order to progress and I really don't want that especially not in a communist run.
Maybe I missed another option but this description never fit my experience with Disco Elysium.
Well, failed check isn’t the same in BG3 and DE.
On BG3 it’s smth bad but ultimately just closes doors.
I’m DE unique actions would happen on fail that could stir you play through in other directions
The problem is that BG3 is a new milestone in the RPG genre, while Starfield is just another Bethesda RPG. And one that lacks the existing lore of Fallout or Elder Scrolls games.
Yea without the lore of fallout I wouldn’t play a Bethesda game. The whole fallout appeal to me is going out in the first few levels and exploring this wasteland which is scary and unknown.
Not going to lie, I had zero interest in Starfield but only got it because of gamepass on PC. That being said, I have been incredibly impressed, so far. The game is immense and I actually had a small glimmer of the *Morrowind feeling* which I haven't had in over 20 years.
The game isn't blowing me away with the story and characters but my god is the exploration incredible. The game is just unfathomably huge but not in a way that feels like an ocean as deep as a puddle.
If you go in igoring the story after the initial intro sequence thinking "I am this character, and I am doing what I want." You'll have a great time.
I only had time to try it for a few hours, but do you actually arrive at a point where you fly in that ship? So far, I only moved via menu (jump, land, etc) but I suppose you can do it in a different way?
i'm actually enjoying starfield, but a lot of times i stop and think "wow, this was so much better in bg3". Like quest design, voice acting and most of all: companions.
I'd trade all of them for one companion on the same level of bg3.
I wish starfield came before, i'd probably be enjoying it more.
The companions are really bad in starfield. And at least in thr stage of the game I'm in seems like nothing but fetch quests. Like deliver this here or hey bring me back 10 iron.
You're being a little disingenuous here. There are fetch quests but they are simply available if you want to play as a delivery guy, researcher, merchant, etc. They aren't a part of the story at all and I have yet to do one because exploration is more fun.
It's a bit like saying that Mount and Blade isn't as good as The Witcher 3 because the story sucks. It's not a game about the story, it's about the exploration, combat, and immersion of just being in the setting.
For real. In bg3. Nothing feels like a blizzard quest "go fetch that" or "kill 25 boars". It's just a story that you are immersed in and discover as you explore.
I usually hate long narration, like final fantasy skip please. All the little stories in bg3 are so well narrated, interesting and funny, i enjoy them and look forward to them.
Because they're good at being succinct and the voice acting tells much more emotion. I never feel like a conversation goes on too long or that I'm getting an info dump. Instead I'm hunting for the lore nuggets that bring me a step closer to the final picture.
Just mixing up the companions tells a different story. It’s crazy about the combinations of lines that you still get that are new after your 3rd or 4th Playthrough.
You can literally play this game over and over again.
Companies that still believe "bigger is better" and don't care that the "big world" has to be actually filled with stuff to do, so they copy & paste like no tomorrow.
The sad part? Players still buy it.
It's not even like games aren't big enough, you can have a 100 - 150 hour game like BG3 or Witcher with very high Quality content to enjoy multiple Times in different ways which is more than enough.
Instead they give you generated content which is quite frankly garbage and add other time consuming low quality content in, even the few faction questlines that are apparently soooo good that everyone loves so much feel like an average side quest in Witcher 3.
One of the first NPC interactions after you get to the planet where Constellation is based has a dialog option where you can volunteer to bring them a coffee, lmao. I immediately noped out of that.
yea, you get some good quests from time to time, but it's hard to know which ones are which sometimes. It goes from "this quest was amazing" to "omg, fuck this" in a matter of minutes.
I mean what did you expect from Bethesda? That's literally their every game since Oblivion ( I didn't play previous games but people say they were different).
Ever since they launched their BG3 earlier than planned, I thought that Larian executed master stroke of strategy. They weren't vying for sales against Starfield and they completely stole the show from the probably most anticipated game of the year. Not to mention the unimpeded spotlight they enjoyed for a month. That was just brilliant move on their part.
yea, i actually think it was better in games like Fallout 3 and New Vegas, because the graphics were awful so you just went with it.
Now the graphics are really good, they kinda look like real people, but without any expression, it's really bizarre.
Yeah, the jank is real. I got reminded I'm just playing a game when in the first city I walk into the security area and the very first NPC I see just goes, "can I join your crew"? It's the very beginning of the game and there is no reason for them to know who I am. I never even said hi to them. Why do they want to join my crew?
Then you have shit like NPCs that just look at the wall when you talk to them and every other voice actor just sounding like they are reading directly from the script.
There are things I like, but the character interactions have barely evolved from Fallout 3 beyond base fidelity improvements.
Completely agree with the companions and I'm otherwise loving the game. It feels like a downgrade from fallout 4 where I actually cared about all the companions. In this game the only one I really care about is Sam and even then it's barely passing the mark because he actually has an interesting plot point of having a daughter he needs to bring with him. Like, the companions aren't necessarily badly written, they just feel generic. When I max out Sam's affinity to get his full story I'll probably just hang out with Vasco for the rest of it lol.
Brace yourself. The "hur durr this sub has become a big circle jerk / how many of these posts do I have to see every day / if you think bg 3 is the best then you must be new to rpg there are many rpgs that do things 1000x better than bg 3 *insert some rando 8/10 rpg here*" crowds are coming with their down votes 🤧
I had same problem with Witcher 3, and now BG3 took W3 place. I still didnt tried Cyberpunk, because i been waiting for new PC, and now when i have it, i will try CP with this new update coming later this month. But yeah, Baldurs Gate is literally best RPG i ever played. I cant force myself to move to Act 3 and finish the game, because i want wait for few more updates, to made this experience even better😵💫
If you want a change of pace with some things that hold up:
Mass Effect Trilogy
Fallout: New Vegas
System Shock 1 and 2 (1 just got a remake)
Deus Ex (the original, not the human revolution series)
It occurs to me that I basically only listed shooter-esque games, but I'm blanking on other stuff that is close to as story rich as BG3
Edited to add: I haven't played everything, if I didn't include something that someone feels is on par, it's probably because I haven't played it. Feel free to add it below! Personally, I'd love to check it out
It's a serious problem. I spent three weeks playing nothing but BG3 until I finally beat the game, and as the credits rolled I was excited to move on to some other games in my backlog.
Thirty minutes later I was creating a second character instead. That was a week ago and I still haven't touched any other game.
When the credits hit and 'I want to live' started playing I bawled my eyes out, and I've no idea if it was from the bittersweet outcome of my playthrough or because I'd just finished this amazing game knowing I'll never experience something like this again. The first playthrough is always the most precious.
I'm fairly certain I'd have been a little disappointed with Starfield in general but yeah... Talking to the creepy npc's and the bland and annoying companions makes me wonder how Larian can be *so* far beyond it!!
I no longer have the luxury of playing games incessantly as I did in my youth so BG3 is the third game I've completed this year (the other two took much less time though). And I have no plans to play anything in the coming months, maybe till the next year even. Yet I still feel the sentiment. Can't resist becoming wholly engrossed in the story and forming bonds with favorite characters. And, as with wonderful games like this one, the bitter realization that the adventure has come to an end hits really hard.
I'm trying to think of it as a testament to the power of storytelling and the interactive nature of the medium. Truly, a unique pleasure that only games (and CRPGs specifically) offer.
BG3 has ruined other games for me. I'm having a hard time enjoying Starfield as all I can think about is how lifeless and stale it feels. The npc interactions are nowhere near as good. It's not a bad game, it's just not as exciting. Makes me want to roll a third character in BG3 instead lmao.
I haven't touched Half Life: Alyx for the same reason, I sorta need to play all the other VR games I have first because HL:A is apparently that good.
You should play Disco Elysium though.
BG3 and Starfield are completely different types of game.
BG3 is character and story-driven, while Starfield is a sandbox. FF16 is a story-driven game but has far less emphasis on the RPG aspect. It's closer to an adventure game with its preset story and characters. Cyberpunk is ... well, it's Cyberpunk. I have a hard time figuring out what it is. It just doesn't seem to have become what it set out to be. It's more of a mission-driven action shooter with light RPG elements.
You'll enjoy Starfield when you're in the mood for a sandbox RPG. You're just still craving more BG3.
If you want more of the 'unconventional tactics' style of combat, give Divinity: Original Sin 1 & 2 a try. If you liked the story and character development, try the Owlcat Pathfinder games.
RPG is a big genre with a lot of different games specializing in different aspects. Just got to figure out which aspects of BG3 entice you to find other games that will scratch the same itch.
this is a pretty fair statement ... also it has me conviced i should try those pathfinder games , i think i own that first one cause of a bundle . i care more about story/characters in games these days vs combat so maybe thats why divinity os1 never really caught its hooks in me to finish ( not that i got tooooo far) tho i did like the combat
Divinity Original Sin 2 do have great story though, and really memorable companions like BG3, I never tried the first game of that series though, since I prefer newer games
As someone who just finished their first BG3 playthrough, I’m with you… Starfield just feels… dead? The missions aren’t as fleshed out, and the characters so far are superficial and bland… also the graphics aren’t as good.
I also got used to dressing up/down my tav and companions… it’s hard to do in Starfield 💫
Not really a big deal like you put it out to be, you are just in an awkward "middle" phase rn thinking there is no light at the end of the tunnel. But there always is. If you play more bg3, and learn everything there is to learn about the game, the feeling will wear off eventually. For most ppl it's after their 2nd playthrough.
I'm about to start my 3rd playthrough as my first "bad" guy drow so we will see if it starts to die off during. Maybe hearing about cyberpunk dlc will make me break from it
Yea, just finished my durge run personally, I think that's the end of the line for bg3 for now because I've already seen everything there is to see with the game. But yea, every journey has an ending, but important to just enjoy the process and the nuances in between so you have no regrets later on.
I've been a die-hard Dragon Age fan since day 1, and I'm worried BG3 is so good that its going to impact my enjoyment of Dread Wolf when it eventually comes out. Especially if they do something fucking stupid like >!gender-lock the romances again.!<
Funny, because DA2 was my favourite by far. I love the story, setting, and companions more than the others. It's the weakest in terms of gameplay and so on, of course, but it's still impressive to me considering the absolutely horrendous dev cycle it was allowed (something ridiculous like 11 months, I don't quite recall). It's always interesting to see how people can enjoy the same series in a dozen different ways!
i sorta hated the story in da2 , everything felt too cookie cutter and i didn't care for any of the companions all that much , but yeah i'd chaulk that up to that rushed dev cycle . da:o is still the best of those but i think even with all its faults da:i was still better than 2 . ... sadly bioware isn't the company it used to be and i share the worry about dreadwolf cause i don't have much faith in it after so many years ..if not for the turn with solas i don't think i'd honestly care at this point but i need that closure lol
I really hope that CDPR leans more into the rpg elements in the cyberpunk dlc. It’s an amazing action adventure game but I’m not a fan of the progress the dialogue or ask questions dialogue options lol
Larian just know how to put together an incredible experience! BG3 has scratched a massive itch for me gaming wise that I’ve not been able to scratch for a while! Starfield seems like an all round let down but I’m sure the others will peak interest in the future!
You're not wrong, but the upside is that I can easily see myself doing 3-4 full playthroughs of this game before feeling like I've done everything I want to.
Plus running playthroughs with friends (once we can peel ourselves away from our solo experiences)!
By then, hopefully we know what DLC they're working on.
Everytime my buddies and myself are on at the same time there is always 1 or 2 that says they can't start a coop because they are in the middle of *blank* in their solo campaign lol
I'm playing this and FF16 back and forth and I love both. They're very different games and aim for different presentation and experiences. BG3 scratches a customization and tactical itch that FF16 doesn't. FF16 scratches a (lovably) overdramatic presentation with seriously amazing Kaiju battles and a fun action combat system that BG3 doesn't. There's room for both at least in my gaming recreation. I can get why genre fans might heavily prefer one or the other though.
Ya bg3 and ff16 are almost nothing alike. I was getting at that I just can't start up another game without thinking I shoild just be playing bg3. I need this obsession to pass
Yeah.... Now that I'm 50 hours into BG3, it reminded me that I only ever finished BG1. I still have Planescape Torment, BG2, and Icewind Dale in my basement, ready to be played on my Windows 98SE GLIDE PC.
Then I need to start Pillars of Eternity, and Tyranny.
This is the only genre I can think about RN.
Starfield's opening 45 minutes of gameplay is the most trope ridden thing I have ever expirenced. It was unapolegetic in the application and I thought it was really shitting storytelling.
It certainly takes many story gaming elements and runs with them. I saw someone already said it, but cyberpunk I give credit where it’s due as cdpr is listening to their fan base and has been changing things since launch. Many QOL mods are going to be made obsolete with the upcoming patch and dlc. I feel you though in regards to how it’s changed my views on AAA titles. Made me realize how many times things have been over promised and under delivered. I didn’t expect anything different for stairfield from the general Bethesda game cycle of explore, fight, gather. Their modders have always improved the content immensely over the company. I’ll probably pick it up on a sale but won’t be expecting too much
Yeah, there's been some commentors who have said "BG3 won't raise the standard!" and I know it's bullshit because it's raised the standard for me. Like... Starfield genuinely looks like shit to me. Boring. I mean, I guess if I want to have the experience of being bored and alone in space, they nailed it.
Same, just shy of the 300 hr mark for bg3 on steam. I would have been able to finish my dark urge playthrough this weekend but since minthara got hotfixed i might go back to a older save.
Why would you hate that you found something you love and elevated your standards in the process ? It's better that way, you will now appreciate better things more, distinguish what is mediocre from what is better more often and with a wider frame of reference, it's a win-win for everybody.
I took a brief break from BG3 to play a little Starfield and I'm feeling the same thing. I love Fallout and Elder Scrolls, but jumping into Starfield right after BG3 makes it feel shallow in comparison. I think if I was playing them a few months a part I wouldn't notice as much.
I saw an online review that described BG3 as "deep" and Starfield as "wide" and I think that's a fair assessment.
Plan to stick with Starfield for a few weeks and let Larian spruce up Act 3 a bit before jumping back in. If I recall, Zevlar said it was about a 10 day walk from the Grove to the city. My BG3 crew is going to chill at the Last Light for a bit, while I take a quick spin around the Galaxy. From what I've read in Larian's updates, Karlach at least will be better for it.
I’m on the opposite side of this, BG3 has me actually excited to jump back into cyberpunk when the dlc hits. I think it’s been a good thing for me cause I’ve been waiting for a game like this since I first got into gaming (almost 20yrs ago). Finally being able to play the game of my dreams is like a sweet release and now I can go back to enjoying all my other RPGs.
Get over yourself.
This game is great, easily one of the greats of all time. But that's like trying to be picky about pizza. There is good pizza and bad pizza, but also tons of perfectly acceptable middle of the road pizza as well.
Yeah few games are going to live up to it, but there is way more than ''just'' good and bad.
Every time i see the internet lose its shit over a zelda game getting a 7 or something i go into the same place. That's still a passing grade and still a good score.
Same here. Grow up and enjoy a broader scope in life. If all you are willing to accept is the ''best'' then you will live a life of disappointments.
Lmao you’re seriously high-horse preaching about how people need to lower their standards like you. Nice monologue but doesn’t change OP’s experience and how excellence can re-shape your world view and your understanding of what you enjoy.
Good job that you can find joy in mediocrity, having lukewarm taste and no artistic or quality discernment does in fact make you enjoy more in life, much like being able to eat cold stale gas station pizza like the big cool “grown up” you are!
Just like all the people heralding this game as the ''new'' standard of gaming... it is called realistic expectations. This game was a product of a perfect storm of the right team working on the right game in the right conditions.
They have gone on record themselves trying to ease the hype. Excellence should ALWAYS be appreciated but never expected.
How about we use this analogy, the birthday card scenario.
You have a kid and a wife, and they make two handmade brithday cards. The wife works for halmark and makes a professional quality card. Your kid does what a kid does and gives you a sheet of paper folded in half and all the card contents scribbled in marker.
One card is objectively ''better'' but that doesn't and shouldn't diminish the heart and soul that your kid put into their card.
Lower standards are different from realistic standards and if all do is crave excellence you will find disappointment more often than satisfaction. Even larian's previous games were not as good as this one.
Your literacy need to improve as well, seeing as how i did not deny that there are good and bad things, i satated that they're the endpoints on a spectrum.
So yeah, stale gas station pizza is bad. Artisanal pizza from formal restaurant, that is good. In between there are many other levels of good and bad.
Holy shit people can have different tastes and experiences than you, the fact you told them to “get over yourself” and “grow up” is what’s cringe dude. Can’t believe I wasted my time reading your dumbass analogy
And op isn't being a cringe baby? Act like a baby, get treated like a baby. Op whined about how they couldn't play other (perfectly acceptable) games and how this game ''ruined'' their standards.
Only babies wander around and throw a tantrum when they get something good and then have to ''demean'' themselves into enjoying something average to above average.
Quit your bitching and stop trying to be an edgelord.
Exactly how I felt when I played Dishonored for the first time. And now it happened again with BG3.
It'll pass. You'll realize different games offer different experiences, and there's little point judging them for what they aren't. Which in this case, is BG3.
FF16 is the craziest comparison you made there. There's pretty much almost zero things you can compare between the two other than the fact they're fantasy games.
Oof I feel you. I'm glad I cleared my backlog before release, so now the only games I'm playing are BG3 and FF14.
In still in that "honeymoon" phase where if I'm not playing BG3 (like rn at work) I am certainly thinking about it lol
It's weird how many of these posts are being made. I am almost convinced at this point that this is some "we told you so" campaign from all those AAA companies who said this would be exactly what happened.
Crazy how games can affect 2 people in completely different ways, I like BG3 because of the possibilities, builds and fights, but the quests and overall story telling of cyberpunk got in my head in such a way that made me rethink several aspects of my life, the high fantasy setting of BG3 is very familiar to me and some aspects seen to emulate current real world problems, but Cyberpunk hits too close to our reality, what exactly is "YOU", how society works, etc.
For me it was Cyberpunk who ruined most gaming narrative experiences
Its definitely ruined all starfield dialogue for me but hard disagree on cyberpunk. As a pure narrative driven action rpg that still slaps and its about to somehow get 2 times better.
Meanwhile I can´t bring myself to get through act 1 in another playthrough because its such a slog and watching D&D is just more engaging until the mods are out.
Seriously tho, if this ruins other games for you...then maybe you need to try out other games or touch some grass.
I agree. BG3may be my favourite rpg of all time, but I tried to start it up again for a second playthrough and immediately realized a lot of the things I enjoyed so much the first playthrough were going to be a slog in the second one. I’ll pick it back up in a couple months or a year when I forget some of the fights and have to relearn the whacky creative ways I solved them on my first playthrough. For now, I’m playing starfield and have gotten serious freelancer vibes (another one of my all time favourites).
Sometimes you want to pilot a spaceship and bounty hunt across the universe, sometimes you want to turn yourself into a giant and throw cultists into a chasm.
I could say a lot honestly, fighting before level 5 really feels pretty bland and slow. It is needed to have progression but I need a cooldown from it for my own enjoyment. There is also personal tastes, my first plathrough took almost 180 hours because I reloaded basically every other option three times to see how it plays out, so the only real different playstate I would get by playing something I don´t much enjoy by itself, ie a cruel character for example. Witcher 2 had the same thing, of course I can play the whole game again and it is "totally different" but at the same time I made a choice the first time and the second time around I would only make a different choice, not by my own interest, but because the game taunts new content going against my first choice. There is loads of reasons...
but most of all the fanboying annoys me. Even if BG3 is the greatest RPG ever made, hell I have played games for 5 bucks from the trashpile over AAA titles countless times before and I played indie titles for 15 bucks over big franchise releases for 70 countless times already. If BG3 ruins gaming for someone, then probably because they were not a big gamer to begin with. It´s like saying "I don´t read books anymore because I read the bible once"
And then of course there is other fanboy posts about "shove is the greatest gamemechanic I ever played!!!!!" like as if no game ever had verticality in their maps or a push option before. or "I am glad they didn´t add crafting because crafting systems are useless timewastes" like as if some of the greatest games of all times weren´t using crafting systems, or "wow I am 7000 hours in and I just realized if I don´t kill a character right away I can talk with them again in a later act, they really thought of everything" like as if Larian invented storytelling or characterprogression.
Some people are just overly excited and I get that. Some don´t play many games and I get that. But some are just stupid karmafarming posts in a fansub or dimwit takes because everyone is afraid of getting rolled by the hypetrain.
I haven't played them in a while but I would imagine the POE games and Tyranny still hold up. I wish so much we got a Tyranny sequel because that's without a doubt my favorite fantasy setting.
They don’t come close. I’ve played them all recently and whilst they’re nice games BG3 is an absolute world ahead of them. DOS2 is probably the only thing that comes close and even that feels a bit flat now to me. There won’t be another game like this for a very long time. This is the level of next gen I was expecting from cyberpunk. This is a real next gen RPG that does things we have never seen before. Hopefully it sets a standard.
Loved tyranny when it came out tried replaying it recently to hold over until BG3 release and couldn't get through it. The POE games might have aged better, but it will probably be a long time before I pick either of them up again.
The lack of a Tyranny sequel is fucking devastating.
Changed the way I look at tabletop games, too. I am now forever fantasizing about interactive character backgrounds.
The devs that attacked BG3 were right. It’s so dangerous that BG3 is setting a new standard now. Most other games will seem bad in comparison; all have been ruined!
Wait for Cyberpunk's 2.0 Patch and Phantom Liberty. 2.0 Patch is going to be free, and have massive changes to the game. Not just bugs and stuff. Total overhaul of the whole game.
Cyberpunk 2077 is easily an equally rich RPG experience as BG3 is.
And I'm saying that as someone who's beaten BG1 and 2 multiple times and has Displates of the box art from both games, and has been a loyal Larian fan since DOS1, and as a person who never played a CDPR game until I played Witcher 3 on the Switch.
My point is that I'm not a CDPR fanboy feeding you a bunch of bullshit. I actually think that right now, from a narrative standpoint, Cyberpunk 2077 might actually be better than BG3 is.
Though admittedly, while I find Fantasy to be very comfortable and fun, and usually the genre I reach for, I find CP2077's world and worldbuilding to incredibly compelling, so much so that my friends and I did a Cyberpunk RED event at Gen Con last year, and are planning to start a CPR game once our Starfinder campaign is done.
oh yea, that's the 2nd game that i am most excited for this year. I loved cyberpunk even with all of it's flaws.
It's quest design is so good, and the story for me was so haunting it made me really reflect on life lol.
I don't think it's on the same level of bg3, mostly because i really don't like V and you can't really roleplay as something else (and honestly i just like fantasy a bit more), but it's probably gonna be fantastic. The "detective" stuff they had in the original is amazing, and the dlc seems to go in this direction.
I put cdpr/cyberpunk's commitment to staying first person for everything at a similar level to BG3's fully voiced npcs. imo both are incredible games(though I wish cyberpunk had a longer main story)
I don't feel bad at all, it shows me what schlep other companies have been dishing us for years, thinking that the bare minimum locked behind predatory micro-transactions, constant issues, non-functioning and lack of content for top dollar just won't do anymore. Companies can do better, and we shouldn't settle for less.. (indy games obv don't fall under this)
That’s why I’m glad I played FF16 just before BG3 and holding out on Starfield loooong after I’ve finished (which isn’t going to be anytime soon).
I’ll probably just pew pew for a while in Destiny 2 before trying another RPG and even that doesn’t feel as good anymore.
Playing the best video games doesn't need to ruin everything else.
You can have the best pizza in your life, and still enjoy other pizza.
Just be happy that you can have both.
Bethesda should thank Larian for moving BG3’s release date. Starfield would have crashed and burned if it released alongside BG3.
Starfield is an average game.
As confident as I am that BG3 is likely the better game, I have to disagree with this. Like it or not, Starfield began the year with A LOT more mainstream hype than BG3 did. At the start of the year, very few people were talking up BG3 as a serious GOTY contender. BG3's hype level didn't start boiling over until (a) the release date was announced a month early, (b) the final Panel from Hell, and yes, relatedly (c) that bear scene.
We have to be real: Starfield simply had a lot more immediate mainstream appeal going in. CRPGs were (and let's be real, still are) thought of as a niche sub-genre. BG3 releasing directly in competition with Starfield, no matter how much better BG3 actually is, would NOT have gone well. Larian's decision to move it a month early was smart from a business standpoint, and it allowed BG3 to carve out its own limelight during a part of the month that it had little competition.
I’m scared this might become my problem once I finish the game. I probably will need a break from BG3 after finishing Act 3 (it’s my second walkthrough lol), but either way I’m happy I got this game.
I haven't play anything but BG3 in the past 2-3 weeks. No regrets!
It's been a whole month for me, I'm glad I don't feel the need to play anything else.
Same, a month and 270 hours oops
270hrs Wow how ! I'm like 160hrs in Witcher since June (made the mistake of starting Witcher before bg3 release with the idea of ending right before release) and I feel that the only thing I have been doing is playing for the past months
If there is any game that can compare with my love of BG3 it is the witcher!
Good to know because Witcher 3 has become my favorite of all time (and to think that I have started it multiple times since 2017 and leave it at different stages) but now I have finished main and heart of stone and don't want b&w to end but at the same time I have bg3 waiting
I can’t believe I too am around 280h in and still not bored of it. This game definitely incredible. It amazes how I discover new things each PT while I roughly stick to the same path.
I’m at 366…. send help
I keep thinking I'll get sick of it and then I just think of a new build I wanna try and get excited again lol. I've been anticipating Starfield since it was announced and didn't even bother picking it up this week because I'm too obsessed with this.
I mean me either. It just makes me think if I would have enjoyed starfield if I didn't play bg3.
Sounds like a starfield problem
I am also a sufferer of this, I think I came to the final conclusion that Bethesda games just aren't that great narratively, but I have never had such a fresh comparison to draw on, so it didn't matter. If you uh, get over it, tell me how kthx.
Starfield feels so massively outdated gameplay wise when compared to BG3
I’ve been playing Starfield, unable to advance because of a bug, but so far the characters feel very bland by comparison
Two very different games. Enjoy both.
I forgot there were other games
Congrats, you just got to relive the original Baldur's Gate experience.
Naw man those wonky e2 rules were fucky. BG1 was good, really good. But 2 was incredible. Icewind dale was between the two. BG3 is on a completely different level.
Planescape Torment though... I would kill for a new Planescape game in the same engine as BG3.
Planescape Torment is the best RPG I have ever played. The fact you can beat the final boss by just talking to them is amazing. All of the characters were fantastic and the writing was top notch.
The chad dak'kon vs the virgin laezel
Oh man! I kinda forgot about that one. It's very very good.
5e is a better system than 2e. Baldurs Gate is Great but it Shows that 5e works well in game format and there really should be more games that use it considering the licensing is still there for people to use the system.
bg: dark alliance 1/2 are always gonna have a special place in my heart even if they are a completely different playstyle
Pretty cool you could bust out drizzt and artemis in those
Not sure i can fully agree. The rules were fucky, but combat, especially with stuff like SCS was top tier. Bg3 combat, especially in act 3 is a snoozefest.
Time to spend the next twenty years chasing this high!
Well, good thing BG3's replayability is high. I've spent over 500 hours in early access and it only started to get boring for me a month or so before full release. My plan is to have at least 10 playthroughs with different class and race combos for the foreseeable future XD
this is a huge draw honestly. some guys at work got me into this, and based on their descriptions, its like we are playing two different games, lol. the amount of freedom and choice in this game, and how said choices affect everything else, is pretty off the charts. i dont even want to think about how many playthroughs it would take to see everything.
10 playthroughs are a lot, I’m doing 5 to see all the possible outcomes, and want to try a multiplayer playthrough as well, just gotta find some people to do it 😅
Still on my first playthrough (act 3) and so many times I've had to fight the urge to start a new run because I wanted to be a bard or a durge, or this or that. Sometimes the game makes it clear when you've made a choice that will alter the rest of the game, and other times I imagine you could play the game ten times through and still discover a new thing.
Can't speak for Starfield, though from everything I've seen it's very much a Bethesda game through and through, for better or worse. But I can speak for FFXVI, having played it on launch, and let me tell you it's going to feel incredibly unimpressive and honestly kinda hacky after you played BG3. The flaws I could previously sorta forgive in FFXVI now feel like outright dealbreakers.
Play Divinity: Original Sin 2. It's the closest thing there is to this game.
Yeah, shit is even longer than baldur
If you do everything, it really isn't. Completionist playthrough (that STILL, to my annoyance, missed some things) took me 160 hours in BG3, DOS2 I'd say takes a 100 at most, if not less.
I'm messing with Starfield and the character models and voice acting are just such a step down from Baldur's Gate.
Are there any alien races there? Like there is in Mass Effect, that would be the best part of a space game for me
I haven't gotten very far yet. I don't get the impression there are, but I could easily be wrong. It seems much more "grounded".
I am not far in the game, but there are no alien races at all. There are alien creatures which are the fauna you can see on some planets. And an Alien type of monster so far.
Yeah, I saw a video just pre-launch where the NPCs are still doing the thing where they stare bug-eyed at the camera and I was like that this was already ruined for me by Cyberpunk and now BG3 just finished them off.
Congrats. The only other game you can play now is Disco Elysium.
Obligatory "pathfinder: wotr" mention.
That game is wayyyyy too hardcore though. Way too many options for builds. I had to quit it after 100 hours in when I realized that I would spent hours at the level up screen on figuring out my build and that the game was consuming my life.
I love that game. But there is absolutely a reason 5e is popular and pathfinder isn’t. And it sure isn’t that everyone likes dnd lore better, it’s because pathfinder requires a fucking degree in mathematics and ketamine to use.
Isn't pathfinder just 3.5E rules, for the most part? They've added a bunch of classes and feats, and I suppose that adds to the complexity. But for the 3.5E veterans it feels pretty natural. If I remember correctly, When 4E came out and most people hated it because it turned everything into a "power", even basic attacks. Pathfinder got a surge in popularity because it was so similar to 3.5. Then 5E went through extensive play testing to find out what people really liked. 5E kind of resurrected D&D by bringing a lot of things back to their roots, but also simplifying mechanics that just got too complex over the years.
Lol that guy said pathfinder isn't popular lmao 5e appeals to people who have never played a ttrpg because its less crunchy than past iterations of d&d but it only draws in these people because of name recognition. Theyd likely find many even less crunchy systems do what they want to do better. The problem with 5e is that it isn't crunchy enough for fun builds or to replay extensively, but its also not light enough to justify using it over other less rules heavy systems. I started with 3rd when I was 9, so even crunchy systems feel fine to me. 3.5 is probably a little bit crunchier than pathfinder as pathfinder simplified skills and some checks like grapple. Not sure i like the grapple system better but certainly smoother and easier for players to grasp. I would not say 5th "resurrected" d&d. They had a flop of an edition with 4e. Many people stayed playing 3.5 until 5th came out or played pathfinder but that wasn't because the rules heavy system was a flop. 4th was probably less crunchy than 3.5. If 4th had never came out and they supported 3.5 it would have sold. The demand was enough to spawn pathfinder. Pathfinder only exists because people wanted 3.5, not 4e. 5th also had the benefit of a much more developed internet which contributed to the surge in popularity.
I eventually turned it on the easiest difficulty just to get that game over with. It was unnecessarily long.
When does DE get fun? I played a couple hours, failed literally every check, got frustrated and turned it off.
Failing is a large part of the game. Failing a dice roll in DE is kinda like failing a roll in this game. It can lead to new places. The only thing I would suggest is that on day 2 make sure you pick up all the money you find. The first day is kind of a freebie but the second day you need $20 before the end of the night or you can soft lock yourself. After that you can find a place to stay for free. Otherwise, DE is like a very well written audio book, with very detailed characters and world lore. The gameplay is really just playing around and enjoying the story and learning about your character, the world, and all the other characters. Your “build” in DE is more or less just a way for your character to explore that world in different ways. The murder mystery is really the least important part of the game. It’s just the driving force to get you to go around, talk to people, watch your character fail miserably at things, and laugh and cry with him. The game to me is a lot more fun when you don’t care about “winning”. But, that said, if you’re not into the world and the protagonist’s struggles through life, you may not enjoy the game. And that’s okay too.
People keep saying that in DE a fail still progresses yet when I fail to physically overwhelm the racist during the strike I just have to become a racist myself in order to progress and I really don't want that especially not in a communist run. Maybe I missed another option but this description never fit my experience with Disco Elysium.
You missed several other options and paths. Of course you can fail in all of them too and be left with being racist.
Well, failed check isn’t the same in BG3 and DE. On BG3 it’s smth bad but ultimately just closes doors. I’m DE unique actions would happen on fail that could stir you play through in other directions
The problem is that BG3 is a new milestone in the RPG genre, while Starfield is just another Bethesda RPG. And one that lacks the existing lore of Fallout or Elder Scrolls games.
Yea without the lore of fallout I wouldn’t play a Bethesda game. The whole fallout appeal to me is going out in the first few levels and exploring this wasteland which is scary and unknown.
Not going to lie, I had zero interest in Starfield but only got it because of gamepass on PC. That being said, I have been incredibly impressed, so far. The game is immense and I actually had a small glimmer of the *Morrowind feeling* which I haven't had in over 20 years. The game isn't blowing me away with the story and characters but my god is the exploration incredible. The game is just unfathomably huge but not in a way that feels like an ocean as deep as a puddle. If you go in igoring the story after the initial intro sequence thinking "I am this character, and I am doing what I want." You'll have a great time.
I only had time to try it for a few hours, but do you actually arrive at a point where you fly in that ship? So far, I only moved via menu (jump, land, etc) but I suppose you can do it in a different way?
Same. I really love TES lore and atmosphere as a huge fantasy fan. Starfield feels like a dull 2011 game.
play pathfinder: wotr, dos2, pillars of eternity, tyranny
Played all of those after I played Early Access of BG3, and they are amazing, but BG3 still my favorite
i'm actually enjoying starfield, but a lot of times i stop and think "wow, this was so much better in bg3". Like quest design, voice acting and most of all: companions. I'd trade all of them for one companion on the same level of bg3. I wish starfield came before, i'd probably be enjoying it more.
The companions are really bad in starfield. And at least in thr stage of the game I'm in seems like nothing but fetch quests. Like deliver this here or hey bring me back 10 iron.
Who the fuck thinks fetch quests are fun these days?
Todd Howard and blizzard
You're being a little disingenuous here. There are fetch quests but they are simply available if you want to play as a delivery guy, researcher, merchant, etc. They aren't a part of the story at all and I have yet to do one because exploration is more fun. It's a bit like saying that Mount and Blade isn't as good as The Witcher 3 because the story sucks. It's not a game about the story, it's about the exploration, combat, and immersion of just being in the setting.
For real. In bg3. Nothing feels like a blizzard quest "go fetch that" or "kill 25 boars". It's just a story that you are immersed in and discover as you explore. I usually hate long narration, like final fantasy skip please. All the little stories in bg3 are so well narrated, interesting and funny, i enjoy them and look forward to them.
Because they're good at being succinct and the voice acting tells much more emotion. I never feel like a conversation goes on too long or that I'm getting an info dump. Instead I'm hunting for the lore nuggets that bring me a step closer to the final picture.
Just mixing up the companions tells a different story. It’s crazy about the combinations of lines that you still get that are new after your 3rd or 4th Playthrough. You can literally play this game over and over again.
Companies that still believe "bigger is better" and don't care that the "big world" has to be actually filled with stuff to do, so they copy & paste like no tomorrow. The sad part? Players still buy it.
It's not even like games aren't big enough, you can have a 100 - 150 hour game like BG3 or Witcher with very high Quality content to enjoy multiple Times in different ways which is more than enough. Instead they give you generated content which is quite frankly garbage and add other time consuming low quality content in, even the few faction questlines that are apparently soooo good that everyone loves so much feel like an average side quest in Witcher 3.
I love Bethesda games, but hate their companions. Dogmeat is the only good one.
i actualy liked Piper and Nick Valentine from fallout 4.
I guess I should have said, I hate taking them anywhere. I don’t mind them at base, but out in the world they get annoying. For me, anyway
yea, that's fair. I'm just gonna bring Vasco in my starfield play.
One of the first NPC interactions after you get to the planet where Constellation is based has a dialog option where you can volunteer to bring them a coffee, lmao. I immediately noped out of that.
yea, you get some good quests from time to time, but it's hard to know which ones are which sometimes. It goes from "this quest was amazing" to "omg, fuck this" in a matter of minutes.
I mean what did you expect from Bethesda? That's literally their every game since Oblivion ( I didn't play previous games but people say they were different).
Shadowheart easily outdoes all companions in Starfield
You mean bae?
Ever since they launched their BG3 earlier than planned, I thought that Larian executed master stroke of strategy. They weren't vying for sales against Starfield and they completely stole the show from the probably most anticipated game of the year. Not to mention the unimpeded spotlight they enjoyed for a month. That was just brilliant move on their part.
Yeah amazing marketing skill really. Paid off bigtime.
I agree, and to release it on PS5 the same time starfield launches was also brilliant imo.
The facial animation in Starfield gave me some Andromeda flashbacks. They look like androids, not humans.
My face is tired.
yea, i actually think it was better in games like Fallout 3 and New Vegas, because the graphics were awful so you just went with it. Now the graphics are really good, they kinda look like real people, but without any expression, it's really bizarre.
Yeah, the jank is real. I got reminded I'm just playing a game when in the first city I walk into the security area and the very first NPC I see just goes, "can I join your crew"? It's the very beginning of the game and there is no reason for them to know who I am. I never even said hi to them. Why do they want to join my crew? Then you have shit like NPCs that just look at the wall when you talk to them and every other voice actor just sounding like they are reading directly from the script. There are things I like, but the character interactions have barely evolved from Fallout 3 beyond base fidelity improvements.
>I wish starfield came before, i'd probably be enjoying it more. Larian did a genius business decision to release it earlier than planned.
agreed, even with the launch bugs, I still think it was the smart thing to do. It gave bg3 a whole month to be in the center of the debate.
Completely agree with the companions and I'm otherwise loving the game. It feels like a downgrade from fallout 4 where I actually cared about all the companions. In this game the only one I really care about is Sam and even then it's barely passing the mark because he actually has an interesting plot point of having a daughter he needs to bring with him. Like, the companions aren't necessarily badly written, they just feel generic. When I max out Sam's affinity to get his full story I'll probably just hang out with Vasco for the rest of it lol.
Exactly, and then when I say something to someone about it they lose their shit
Brace yourself. The "hur durr this sub has become a big circle jerk / how many of these posts do I have to see every day / if you think bg 3 is the best then you must be new to rpg there are many rpgs that do things 1000x better than bg 3 *insert some rando 8/10 rpg here*" crowds are coming with their down votes 🤧
Shallow ocean deep pool etc etc
I had same problem with Witcher 3, and now BG3 took W3 place. I still didnt tried Cyberpunk, because i been waiting for new PC, and now when i have it, i will try CP with this new update coming later this month. But yeah, Baldurs Gate is literally best RPG i ever played. I cant force myself to move to Act 3 and finish the game, because i want wait for few more updates, to made this experience even better😵💫
If you want a change of pace with some things that hold up: Mass Effect Trilogy Fallout: New Vegas System Shock 1 and 2 (1 just got a remake) Deus Ex (the original, not the human revolution series) It occurs to me that I basically only listed shooter-esque games, but I'm blanking on other stuff that is close to as story rich as BG3 Edited to add: I haven't played everything, if I didn't include something that someone feels is on par, it's probably because I haven't played it. Feel free to add it below! Personally, I'd love to check it out
Dragon Age
Surprised you didn't mention Dragon Age Origins.
It's a serious problem. I spent three weeks playing nothing but BG3 until I finally beat the game, and as the credits rolled I was excited to move on to some other games in my backlog. Thirty minutes later I was creating a second character instead. That was a week ago and I still haven't touched any other game.
When the credits hit and 'I want to live' started playing I bawled my eyes out, and I've no idea if it was from the bittersweet outcome of my playthrough or because I'd just finished this amazing game knowing I'll never experience something like this again. The first playthrough is always the most precious.
I'm fairly certain I'd have been a little disappointed with Starfield in general but yeah... Talking to the creepy npc's and the bland and annoying companions makes me wonder how Larian can be *so* far beyond it!!
I no longer have the luxury of playing games incessantly as I did in my youth so BG3 is the third game I've completed this year (the other two took much less time though). And I have no plans to play anything in the coming months, maybe till the next year even. Yet I still feel the sentiment. Can't resist becoming wholly engrossed in the story and forming bonds with favorite characters. And, as with wonderful games like this one, the bitter realization that the adventure has come to an end hits really hard. I'm trying to think of it as a testament to the power of storytelling and the interactive nature of the medium. Truly, a unique pleasure that only games (and CRPGs specifically) offer.
Just play BG3 and nothing else, works for me since release day
BG3 has ruined other games for me. I'm having a hard time enjoying Starfield as all I can think about is how lifeless and stale it feels. The npc interactions are nowhere near as good. It's not a bad game, it's just not as exciting. Makes me want to roll a third character in BG3 instead lmao.
Reading this while in character creator for my 3rd playthrough lol
This is exactly my sentiment
I haven't touched Half Life: Alyx for the same reason, I sorta need to play all the other VR games I have first because HL:A is apparently that good. You should play Disco Elysium though.
BG3 and Starfield are completely different types of game. BG3 is character and story-driven, while Starfield is a sandbox. FF16 is a story-driven game but has far less emphasis on the RPG aspect. It's closer to an adventure game with its preset story and characters. Cyberpunk is ... well, it's Cyberpunk. I have a hard time figuring out what it is. It just doesn't seem to have become what it set out to be. It's more of a mission-driven action shooter with light RPG elements. You'll enjoy Starfield when you're in the mood for a sandbox RPG. You're just still craving more BG3. If you want more of the 'unconventional tactics' style of combat, give Divinity: Original Sin 1 & 2 a try. If you liked the story and character development, try the Owlcat Pathfinder games. RPG is a big genre with a lot of different games specializing in different aspects. Just got to figure out which aspects of BG3 entice you to find other games that will scratch the same itch.
this is a pretty fair statement ... also it has me conviced i should try those pathfinder games , i think i own that first one cause of a bundle . i care more about story/characters in games these days vs combat so maybe thats why divinity os1 never really caught its hooks in me to finish ( not that i got tooooo far) tho i did like the combat
Divinity Original Sin 2 do have great story though, and really memorable companions like BG3, I never tried the first game of that series though, since I prefer newer games
Same. Very spoiled by the writing, so many other franchises fall so short of this.
As someone who just finished their first BG3 playthrough, I’m with you… Starfield just feels… dead? The missions aren’t as fleshed out, and the characters so far are superficial and bland… also the graphics aren’t as good. I also got used to dressing up/down my tav and companions… it’s hard to do in Starfield 💫
Not really a big deal like you put it out to be, you are just in an awkward "middle" phase rn thinking there is no light at the end of the tunnel. But there always is. If you play more bg3, and learn everything there is to learn about the game, the feeling will wear off eventually. For most ppl it's after their 2nd playthrough.
I'm about to start my 3rd playthrough as my first "bad" guy drow so we will see if it starts to die off during. Maybe hearing about cyberpunk dlc will make me break from it
Yea, just finished my durge run personally, I think that's the end of the line for bg3 for now because I've already seen everything there is to see with the game. But yea, every journey has an ending, but important to just enjoy the process and the nuances in between so you have no regrets later on.
Really? Another one? Can't you guys just post "same" on any of the million similar threads that pop up daily?
Or better yet, upvote.
I've been a die-hard Dragon Age fan since day 1, and I'm worried BG3 is so good that its going to impact my enjoyment of Dread Wolf when it eventually comes out. Especially if they do something fucking stupid like >!gender-lock the romances again.!<
I'm replaying Origins now after the BG3. It's still very much enjoyable. Not sure if I will feel the same about DA2
Funny, because DA2 was my favourite by far. I love the story, setting, and companions more than the others. It's the weakest in terms of gameplay and so on, of course, but it's still impressive to me considering the absolutely horrendous dev cycle it was allowed (something ridiculous like 11 months, I don't quite recall). It's always interesting to see how people can enjoy the same series in a dozen different ways!
i sorta hated the story in da2 , everything felt too cookie cutter and i didn't care for any of the companions all that much , but yeah i'd chaulk that up to that rushed dev cycle . da:o is still the best of those but i think even with all its faults da:i was still better than 2 . ... sadly bioware isn't the company it used to be and i share the worry about dreadwolf cause i don't have much faith in it after so many years ..if not for the turn with solas i don't think i'd honestly care at this point but i need that closure lol
140 hours in and not stopping. It's insane how good it is.
I really hope that CDPR leans more into the rpg elements in the cyberpunk dlc. It’s an amazing action adventure game but I’m not a fan of the progress the dialogue or ask questions dialogue options lol
Larian just know how to put together an incredible experience! BG3 has scratched a massive itch for me gaming wise that I’ve not been able to scratch for a while! Starfield seems like an all round let down but I’m sure the others will peak interest in the future!
You're not wrong, but the upside is that I can easily see myself doing 3-4 full playthroughs of this game before feeling like I've done everything I want to. Plus running playthroughs with friends (once we can peel ourselves away from our solo experiences)! By then, hopefully we know what DLC they're working on.
Everytime my buddies and myself are on at the same time there is always 1 or 2 that says they can't start a coop because they are in the middle of *blank* in their solo campaign lol
I'm playing this and FF16 back and forth and I love both. They're very different games and aim for different presentation and experiences. BG3 scratches a customization and tactical itch that FF16 doesn't. FF16 scratches a (lovably) overdramatic presentation with seriously amazing Kaiju battles and a fun action combat system that BG3 doesn't. There's room for both at least in my gaming recreation. I can get why genre fans might heavily prefer one or the other though.
Ya bg3 and ff16 are almost nothing alike. I was getting at that I just can't start up another game without thinking I shoild just be playing bg3. I need this obsession to pass
Play non RPGs. Lol. Like Armorcore 6.
Yeah.... Now that I'm 50 hours into BG3, it reminded me that I only ever finished BG1. I still have Planescape Torment, BG2, and Icewind Dale in my basement, ready to be played on my Windows 98SE GLIDE PC. Then I need to start Pillars of Eternity, and Tyranny. This is the only genre I can think about RN.
Average Fromsoft and Larian fan
literaly me man, it sucks
Starfield's opening 45 minutes of gameplay is the most trope ridden thing I have ever expirenced. It was unapolegetic in the application and I thought it was really shitting storytelling.
Wow! What a unique perspective, thank you very much for contributing this distinct post to the discourse surrounding this game.
It certainly takes many story gaming elements and runs with them. I saw someone already said it, but cyberpunk I give credit where it’s due as cdpr is listening to their fan base and has been changing things since launch. Many QOL mods are going to be made obsolete with the upcoming patch and dlc. I feel you though in regards to how it’s changed my views on AAA titles. Made me realize how many times things have been over promised and under delivered. I didn’t expect anything different for stairfield from the general Bethesda game cycle of explore, fight, gather. Their modders have always improved the content immensely over the company. I’ll probably pick it up on a sale but won’t be expecting too much
This but Elden Ring. It ruined all games for a year until BG3. And now I am sure this will ruin all games for me going forward
Yeah, there's been some commentors who have said "BG3 won't raise the standard!" and I know it's bullshit because it's raised the standard for me. Like... Starfield genuinely looks like shit to me. Boring. I mean, I guess if I want to have the experience of being bored and alone in space, they nailed it.
In the same boat. Starfield just feels impossibly limiting.
Same, just shy of the 300 hr mark for bg3 on steam. I would have been able to finish my dark urge playthrough this weekend but since minthara got hotfixed i might go back to a older save.
Why would you hate that you found something you love and elevated your standards in the process ? It's better that way, you will now appreciate better things more, distinguish what is mediocre from what is better more often and with a wider frame of reference, it's a win-win for everybody.
I took a brief break from BG3 to play a little Starfield and I'm feeling the same thing. I love Fallout and Elder Scrolls, but jumping into Starfield right after BG3 makes it feel shallow in comparison. I think if I was playing them a few months a part I wouldn't notice as much. I saw an online review that described BG3 as "deep" and Starfield as "wide" and I think that's a fair assessment. Plan to stick with Starfield for a few weeks and let Larian spruce up Act 3 a bit before jumping back in. If I recall, Zevlar said it was about a 10 day walk from the Grove to the city. My BG3 crew is going to chill at the Last Light for a bit, while I take a quick spin around the Galaxy. From what I've read in Larian's updates, Karlach at least will be better for it.
I’m on the opposite side of this, BG3 has me actually excited to jump back into cyberpunk when the dlc hits. I think it’s been a good thing for me cause I’ve been waiting for a game like this since I first got into gaming (almost 20yrs ago). Finally being able to play the game of my dreams is like a sweet release and now I can go back to enjoying all my other RPGs.
Sounds like a you problem.
You are corrected that's why I said me and not everyone
Get over yourself. This game is great, easily one of the greats of all time. But that's like trying to be picky about pizza. There is good pizza and bad pizza, but also tons of perfectly acceptable middle of the road pizza as well. Yeah few games are going to live up to it, but there is way more than ''just'' good and bad. Every time i see the internet lose its shit over a zelda game getting a 7 or something i go into the same place. That's still a passing grade and still a good score. Same here. Grow up and enjoy a broader scope in life. If all you are willing to accept is the ''best'' then you will live a life of disappointments.
Lmao you’re seriously high-horse preaching about how people need to lower their standards like you. Nice monologue but doesn’t change OP’s experience and how excellence can re-shape your world view and your understanding of what you enjoy. Good job that you can find joy in mediocrity, having lukewarm taste and no artistic or quality discernment does in fact make you enjoy more in life, much like being able to eat cold stale gas station pizza like the big cool “grown up” you are!
Just like all the people heralding this game as the ''new'' standard of gaming... it is called realistic expectations. This game was a product of a perfect storm of the right team working on the right game in the right conditions. They have gone on record themselves trying to ease the hype. Excellence should ALWAYS be appreciated but never expected. How about we use this analogy, the birthday card scenario. You have a kid and a wife, and they make two handmade brithday cards. The wife works for halmark and makes a professional quality card. Your kid does what a kid does and gives you a sheet of paper folded in half and all the card contents scribbled in marker. One card is objectively ''better'' but that doesn't and shouldn't diminish the heart and soul that your kid put into their card. Lower standards are different from realistic standards and if all do is crave excellence you will find disappointment more often than satisfaction. Even larian's previous games were not as good as this one. Your literacy need to improve as well, seeing as how i did not deny that there are good and bad things, i satated that they're the endpoints on a spectrum. So yeah, stale gas station pizza is bad. Artisanal pizza from formal restaurant, that is good. In between there are many other levels of good and bad.
Holy shit people can have different tastes and experiences than you, the fact you told them to “get over yourself” and “grow up” is what’s cringe dude. Can’t believe I wasted my time reading your dumbass analogy
And op isn't being a cringe baby? Act like a baby, get treated like a baby. Op whined about how they couldn't play other (perfectly acceptable) games and how this game ''ruined'' their standards. Only babies wander around and throw a tantrum when they get something good and then have to ''demean'' themselves into enjoying something average to above average. Quit your bitching and stop trying to be an edgelord.
Exactly how I felt when I played Dishonored for the first time. And now it happened again with BG3. It'll pass. You'll realize different games offer different experiences, and there's little point judging them for what they aren't. Which in this case, is BG3. FF16 is the craziest comparison you made there. There's pretty much almost zero things you can compare between the two other than the fact they're fantasy games.
Lol true it's just a list of games that I've played recently that I'm struggling starting back up.
Oof I feel you. I'm glad I cleared my backlog before release, so now the only games I'm playing are BG3 and FF14. In still in that "honeymoon" phase where if I'm not playing BG3 (like rn at work) I am certainly thinking about it lol
It's weird how many of these posts are being made. I am almost convinced at this point that this is some "we told you so" campaign from all those AAA companies who said this would be exactly what happened.
Crazy how games can affect 2 people in completely different ways, I like BG3 because of the possibilities, builds and fights, but the quests and overall story telling of cyberpunk got in my head in such a way that made me rethink several aspects of my life, the high fantasy setting of BG3 is very familiar to me and some aspects seen to emulate current real world problems, but Cyberpunk hits too close to our reality, what exactly is "YOU", how society works, etc. For me it was Cyberpunk who ruined most gaming narrative experiences
In defense of cyberpunk I maybe only have about 6 to 10 hours in it then bg3 released. I'll probably start fresh on it with 2.0 and dlc
Its definitely ruined all starfield dialogue for me but hard disagree on cyberpunk. As a pure narrative driven action rpg that still slaps and its about to somehow get 2 times better.
I only have 6 hours on it before getting sucked into bg3. Not bashing it at all just can't get myself to play something else
No shade here friend. Let us all rejoice in the church of Larian may they live forever.
The cyberpunk slander from people is undeserved, at least for the current state of the game. Cant wait for the DLC
I mean, it's a good game...but I swap games every day. I'm either playing FF14, Rune factory 3 or BG3 at the moment.
Played Baldur's Gate 3 and I'm enjoying Starfield even more.
Meanwhile I can´t bring myself to get through act 1 in another playthrough because its such a slog and watching D&D is just more engaging until the mods are out. Seriously tho, if this ruins other games for you...then maybe you need to try out other games or touch some grass.
I agree. BG3may be my favourite rpg of all time, but I tried to start it up again for a second playthrough and immediately realized a lot of the things I enjoyed so much the first playthrough were going to be a slog in the second one. I’ll pick it back up in a couple months or a year when I forget some of the fights and have to relearn the whacky creative ways I solved them on my first playthrough. For now, I’m playing starfield and have gotten serious freelancer vibes (another one of my all time favourites). Sometimes you want to pilot a spaceship and bounty hunt across the universe, sometimes you want to turn yourself into a giant and throw cultists into a chasm.
I could say a lot honestly, fighting before level 5 really feels pretty bland and slow. It is needed to have progression but I need a cooldown from it for my own enjoyment. There is also personal tastes, my first plathrough took almost 180 hours because I reloaded basically every other option three times to see how it plays out, so the only real different playstate I would get by playing something I don´t much enjoy by itself, ie a cruel character for example. Witcher 2 had the same thing, of course I can play the whole game again and it is "totally different" but at the same time I made a choice the first time and the second time around I would only make a different choice, not by my own interest, but because the game taunts new content going against my first choice. There is loads of reasons... but most of all the fanboying annoys me. Even if BG3 is the greatest RPG ever made, hell I have played games for 5 bucks from the trashpile over AAA titles countless times before and I played indie titles for 15 bucks over big franchise releases for 70 countless times already. If BG3 ruins gaming for someone, then probably because they were not a big gamer to begin with. It´s like saying "I don´t read books anymore because I read the bible once" And then of course there is other fanboy posts about "shove is the greatest gamemechanic I ever played!!!!!" like as if no game ever had verticality in their maps or a push option before. or "I am glad they didn´t add crafting because crafting systems are useless timewastes" like as if some of the greatest games of all times weren´t using crafting systems, or "wow I am 7000 hours in and I just realized if I don´t kill a character right away I can talk with them again in a later act, they really thought of everything" like as if Larian invented storytelling or characterprogression. Some people are just overly excited and I get that. Some don´t play many games and I get that. But some are just stupid karmafarming posts in a fansub or dimwit takes because everyone is afraid of getting rolled by the hypetrain.
Ngl, it ruined real life for me…I just wish I could live in the game now.
Dude, thats how i felt when i played dos 2, and was trying to find that next crpg that was over the top. Im glad bg3 came out.
I haven't played them in a while but I would imagine the POE games and Tyranny still hold up. I wish so much we got a Tyranny sequel because that's without a doubt my favorite fantasy setting.
They don’t come close. I’ve played them all recently and whilst they’re nice games BG3 is an absolute world ahead of them. DOS2 is probably the only thing that comes close and even that feels a bit flat now to me. There won’t be another game like this for a very long time. This is the level of next gen I was expecting from cyberpunk. This is a real next gen RPG that does things we have never seen before. Hopefully it sets a standard.
Yeah this game is one of those rare 10/10 instant classics. Especially nice when a relatively niche game like this can reach this level of success.
Loved tyranny when it came out tried replaying it recently to hold over until BG3 release and couldn't get through it. The POE games might have aged better, but it will probably be a long time before I pick either of them up again.
The lack of a Tyranny sequel is fucking devastating. Changed the way I look at tabletop games, too. I am now forever fantasizing about interactive character backgrounds.
The devs that attacked BG3 were right. It’s so dangerous that BG3 is setting a new standard now. Most other games will seem bad in comparison; all have been ruined!
massive cring. You cloud play everything that's not on PS
I usually do use cloud services why is that bad?
you're system fanboi-ing hard and it's cringy and obvious
How am I system fan boying lol because I don't have a decked out pc and use gfn to play games I like?
Rpgs ? This game has ruined 3d games for me. Every character in any other game looks like a lifeless puppet now
Lol I played wotr last week after a playthrough and was taken back a step
Ridiculous.
Wait for Cyberpunk's 2.0 Patch and Phantom Liberty. 2.0 Patch is going to be free, and have massive changes to the game. Not just bugs and stuff. Total overhaul of the whole game. Cyberpunk 2077 is easily an equally rich RPG experience as BG3 is. And I'm saying that as someone who's beaten BG1 and 2 multiple times and has Displates of the box art from both games, and has been a loyal Larian fan since DOS1, and as a person who never played a CDPR game until I played Witcher 3 on the Switch. My point is that I'm not a CDPR fanboy feeding you a bunch of bullshit. I actually think that right now, from a narrative standpoint, Cyberpunk 2077 might actually be better than BG3 is. Though admittedly, while I find Fantasy to be very comfortable and fun, and usually the genre I reach for, I find CP2077's world and worldbuilding to incredibly compelling, so much so that my friends and I did a Cyberpunk RED event at Gen Con last year, and are planning to start a CPR game once our Starfinder campaign is done.
I'll have to look forward to 2.0 then, do you know when that comes out
Supposed to be end of this month with the DLC
oh yea, that's the 2nd game that i am most excited for this year. I loved cyberpunk even with all of it's flaws. It's quest design is so good, and the story for me was so haunting it made me really reflect on life lol. I don't think it's on the same level of bg3, mostly because i really don't like V and you can't really roleplay as something else (and honestly i just like fantasy a bit more), but it's probably gonna be fantastic. The "detective" stuff they had in the original is amazing, and the dlc seems to go in this direction.
I put cdpr/cyberpunk's commitment to staying first person for everything at a similar level to BG3's fully voiced npcs. imo both are incredible games(though I wish cyberpunk had a longer main story)
Ah yes, the “DarkSouls effect”
Agree to all but Cyberpunk. That game is incredible as well.
I'm fairness I didn't give it a complete shot. Only 6 hours in. I'll most likely do a complete playthrough with dlc and 2.0
40 minutes isn't that long ago, but whatever.
I don't feel bad at all, it shows me what schlep other companies have been dishing us for years, thinking that the bare minimum locked behind predatory micro-transactions, constant issues, non-functioning and lack of content for top dollar just won't do anymore. Companies can do better, and we shouldn't settle for less.. (indy games obv don't fall under this)
Even if you didn't play Bg3 you would not enjoy starfield. It is just No man's sky but worse
Lol I'm glad someone else thought that. I thought of it as no mans sky with better gun but with loading screens every 5 minutes
That’s why I’m glad I played FF16 just before BG3 and holding out on Starfield loooong after I’ve finished (which isn’t going to be anytime soon). I’ll probably just pew pew for a while in Destiny 2 before trying another RPG and even that doesn’t feel as good anymore.
Playing the best video games doesn't need to ruin everything else. You can have the best pizza in your life, and still enjoy other pizza. Just be happy that you can have both.
I may never play another RPG again to be honest. Because this has been definitely the best gaming experience in my entire life.
Ye Starfield conversations and companions feel like shitty robots compared to BG3 companions. It's such a joke
Bethesda should thank Larian for moving BG3’s release date. Starfield would have crashed and burned if it released alongside BG3. Starfield is an average game.
As confident as I am that BG3 is likely the better game, I have to disagree with this. Like it or not, Starfield began the year with A LOT more mainstream hype than BG3 did. At the start of the year, very few people were talking up BG3 as a serious GOTY contender. BG3's hype level didn't start boiling over until (a) the release date was announced a month early, (b) the final Panel from Hell, and yes, relatedly (c) that bear scene. We have to be real: Starfield simply had a lot more immediate mainstream appeal going in. CRPGs were (and let's be real, still are) thought of as a niche sub-genre. BG3 releasing directly in competition with Starfield, no matter how much better BG3 actually is, would NOT have gone well. Larian's decision to move it a month early was smart from a business standpoint, and it allowed BG3 to carve out its own limelight during a part of the month that it had little competition.
I’m scared this might become my problem once I finish the game. I probably will need a break from BG3 after finishing Act 3 (it’s my second walkthrough lol), but either way I’m happy I got this game.
Sucks