Baldur's Gate 3 writer says they're sorry they "fumbled" an infamous community romance: "At least you know I ship it"

News
By published

Dark Urge x Gortash is so close, yet so far

Baldur's Gate 3 screenshot showing Gortash, a human man with tousled brown hair and shadow-y facial hair, smirking
(Image credit: Larian Studios)

If there's one thing Baldur's Gate 3 stans have been dreaming about, it's the ability to romance Gortash - and one of Larian Studios' former narrative design leads wishes they could make it come true.

The Baldur's Gate 3 companions are unique, each with distinct personalities and looks - from the aggressive Lae'zel to the cunning Astarion. There's just one flavor of companion missing, and it's one that would complement Dark Urge Tavs quite nicely - evil. You could argue that Minthara fits the bill, but she just doesn't cut it compared to the main three antagonists - Orin, Ketheric, and the handsome devil stealing fans' hearts, Gortash.

It isn't just fans, though - the RPG's companion and romance lead would also love to rewrite the script to allow for long-requested Dark Urge x Gortash action. Speaking in an interview with Eurogamer, writer Baudelaire Welch reveals that while they personally "believe in the Dark Urge x Gortash ship wholeheartedly," they "never saw it coming." Gortash's popularity came as a surprise - as did his presentation in-game.

"I think we always imagined that Gortash was going to be an 80-year-old man over the course of development, and then we saw his model and it was like, 'Oh!'" Suddenly, the villain was more akin to a hot emo boy band vocalist than an elder like Ketheric. "I so, so, so wish that I had seen that coming and added some optional hints of reactivity into that whole thing," says Welch, thinking back on the possibilities.

In a follow-up post about the Dark Urge x Gortash ship that sadly never sailed, Welch jokes that they're "Sorry I fumbled the aging scene band frontman x bad dragon" - but says "at least you know I ship it." Unfortunately, it's likely that Larian won't get around to allowing us to smooch the bad guy with good hair - the studio recently said you still can't make out with the "complicated" yet handsome Gortash in the RPG's upcoming patch.

Baldur's Gate 3 players have been so busy kissing Shadowheart, the RPG's most-smooched companion, her actor says "I think I've sprained my tongue"

See more PC Gaming News
Anna Koselke
Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.

Read more
Avowed screenshot showing two companions assisting in combat
Avowed director didn't add romance as RPG players often try to cheese companion relationships and she wanted them to "feel natural"
Dragon Age Inquisition
Dragon Age actor says the last time he played Inquisition, he upheld the RPG tradition led by Baldur's Gate 3 actors and romanced his own character: "Which is the best — the best"
Avowed screenshot showing a corpse-like figure's face with glowing purple mushroom/spore growths
Obsidian insisted that Avowed wouldn't have romance, but that wasn't quite true, because there's at least one eligible bachelor, and he's voiced by an iconic Mass Effect heartthrob
Laezel BG3 evil ending
Baldur's Gate 3 Lae'zel actor is enjoying romancing herself in the RPG again because "there's a lot of the stuff I've kind of forgotten about"
Baldur's Gate 3 screenshot showing companion Shadowheart, a young half-elf woman with long tied-back black hair
Baldur's Gate 3 animation impresses Larian Studios, prompting one dev to say "mature" animation of the RPG "would pop the f*** off"
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 dialogue
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 actor follows Baldur’s Gate 3 casts' streaming tradition: "Obviously I'm going to try and f*** myself"
Latest in Baldur's Gate
Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3
"I believe in experiencing life and art through human expression, not software": Baldur's Gate 3 Astarion actor calls for proper AI regulation
Baldur's Gate 3 Karlach
Baldur's Gate 3 Karlach actor says CEOs "just want to save money" with AI: "It'll destroy their reputation, their company, everything"
Baldur's Gate 3 pale vampire elf Astarion, a man with curly white hair and red eyes
A new Baldur's Gate 3 Patch 8 stress test update is here, targeting "several crashes and gameplay fixes" while it "brings us closer to release" of the RPG's big update
Games like The Witcher 3: A cut scene during Act 2 of Baldur's Gate 3.
Baldur's Gate 3's corporate overlord says news on the future of the RPG series is coming "in pretty short order"
Baldur's Gate 3 screenshot showing Astarion, a pale male elf with short curly white hair and red eyes, looking over his shoulder with a smirk on his face
Baldur's Gate 3 and Larian Studios lead Swen Vincke declares that single-player games are, in fact, not "dead" at all – "they just have to be good"
Baldur's Gate 3 screenshot showing companion Shadowheart, a young half-elf woman with long tied-back black hair
Baldur's Gate 3 animation impresses Larian Studios, prompting one dev to say "mature" animation of the RPG "would pop the f*** off"
Latest in News
Pillars of Eternity
10 years later, in a post-Baldur's Gate 3 and Avowed world, Obsidian is giving its own throwback CRPG Pillars of Eternity a turn-based combat mode
Destiny 2 Lightfall
When Destiny 2 "weekly active users dropped lower and faster than we'd seen since 2018," Bungie assembled an A-Team to put out some fires: "We needed to do something"
Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo looking at a giant key which is also a clue
Netflix is rebooting Scooby-Doo as a live-action series from the producer of Supergirl and The Flash centered around a "supernatural murder" at a summer camp
Astro Bot
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"
More about baldur s gate
Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3

"I believe in experiencing life and art through human expression, not software": Baldur's Gate 3 Astarion actor calls for proper AI regulation
Baldur's Gate 3 Karlach

Baldur's Gate 3 Karlach actor says CEOs "just want to save money" with AI: "It'll destroy their reputation, their company, everything"
Andor season 2

Andor showrunner hopes that the Disney Plus show's success helps convince Lucasfilm to sign off on either a Star Wars horror movie or sitcom

See more latest
Most Popular
Andor season 2
Andor showrunner hopes that the Disney Plus show's success helps convince Lucasfilm to sign off on either a Star Wars horror movie or sitcom
Pillars of Eternity
10 years later, in a post-Baldur's Gate 3 and Avowed world, Obsidian is giving its own throwback CRPG Pillars of Eternity a turn-based combat mode
Chris Evans as Steve Rogers with the rest of the gang during the superhero movie, The Avengers.
The OG Fox X-Men are back, with Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, and more joining the cast of Avengers: Doomsday alongside a whole new Avengers team to take on Robert Downey Jr's Doctor Doom
Destiny 2 Lightfall
When Destiny 2 "weekly active users dropped lower and faster than we'd seen since 2018," Bungie assembled an A-Team to put out some fires: "We needed to do something"
The Handmaid's Tale season 6 first look: Elisabeth Moss as June Osborne
The Handmaid's Tale will go back to basics with a "classic" series finale that's been years in the making
Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo looking at a giant key which is also a clue
Netflix is rebooting Scooby-Doo as a live-action series from the producer of Supergirl and The Flash centered around a "supernatural murder" at a summer camp
Astro Bot
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
Black Mirror season 7
Charlie Brooker promises Black Mirror season 7 is "a bit more OG", having previously said that he didn't want the series to be known as "the 'tech is bad' show" anymore
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"