Baldur’s Gate 3’s Success Puts Starfield Between a Rock and…

Summary

Baldur's Gate 3 has set a high bar for future RPGs with its fantastic adventure, captivating story, and immersive gameplay, making it one of the best modern RPGs.
Unlike many AAA games, Baldur's Gate 3 launched in a stable state, providing players with a smooth gaming experience.
With its success, Baldur's Gate 3 may overshadow Bethesda's upcoming Starfield, as RPG fans inevitably compare the two games and point out potential shortcomings in Starfield's romance options, world design, and RPG elements.

Baldur's Gate 3 has taken the gaming industry by storm and the RPG genre may never be the same again. Larian Studios was able to craft such a fantastic adventure that it has quickly cemented itself as one of the best modern RPG developers around. Everything about Baldur's Gate 3 has intrigued players and Dungeons and Dragons fans may never want to leave its fantastical world. It has almost everything that RPG fans could ever want, and that has set a high bar for future RPGs to follow.

Baldur's Gate 3 is not the only major RPG to launch this year, though, as Bethesda's hotly anticipated Starfield is set to hit store shelves next month. This will be the first new IP from the studio in 25 years and fans are extremely excited to see what it delivers. It is unlike anything the studio has made before and promises to be one of the most advanced sci-fi RPGs around, but that promise may be hard to deliver on since RPG fans may also have some lofty expectations after the success of Baldur's Gate 3. While Starfield may or may not turn out to be a success, Bethesda will need to blow fans away if it wants any chance at not being overshadowed by Larian Studios.

Baldur's Gate 3 Has Created Lofy Expectations for the RPG Genre

Baldur's Gate 3 has quickly become one of the greatest RPGs ever made, and it is very easy to see why. The story is thrilling, the world is filled with charismatic characters, and the gameplay is challenging and exciting. Players can do pretty much whatever they want within the confines of the world, and that control incentivizes players to keep coming back for more. It is probably the closest that gaming has ever gotten to delivering a true Dungeons and Dragons experience, and it may be a while before the industry can beat it.

Baldur's Gate 3 is not only a fantastic RPG, but it also launched in a very stable state. While there are still numerous bugs that need to be squashed, the game has been running smoothly since its launch. Unlike a lot of AAA games recently, players were able to jump right in without worrying that their experience would be ruined. Larian Studios has also shown how committed it is to its fanbase as it quickly tries to iron out the rough edges, and that is a welcome change of pace.

Larian Studios has crafted such an exciting experience that there is a real chance it overshadows Starfield come September. While Starfield will likely be a massive success for Bethesda, it may be constantly compared to Baldur's Gate 3. RPG fans are already pointing out that Starfield will have fewer romance options, its planets may feel emptier than Baldur's Gate 3's world, and it may be lacking some crucial RPG elements. Bethesda is also not known for its smooth game launches, and that could push some RPG players away. The fact that the PlayStation 5 version of Baldur's Gate 3 is launching on the same day as Starfield will only make these comparisons more prevalent.

There is space in the RPG genre for these two massive titles, but that does not mean Starfield will not suffer from Baldur's Gate 3's success. While both games will deliver vastly different experiences, they are both RPGs at their core and will attract similar audiences. Larian Studios has shown those players what it can create and those same players may be looking for that in Bethesda's games. RPG players will just have to wait and see if Bethesda can deliver something independently exciting or if they should just stick to Baldur's Gate 3 for the time being.