Baldur's Gate 3 has won dozens of awards and sold millions of copies, but that's not necessarily what its developers expected - in fact, some of them were simply "relieved" to see it do well.
In an interview with GamePressure, Baldur's Gate 3 lead writer Adam Smith reminisced about release day, saying that while Larian "knew it was good," the exact launch numbers were yet to be determined. "I did not expect it to be anywhere near as big as it was," Smith says.
Smith also says that while several members of his team went out partying, "a few of us stayed behind in the office. We saw the number keep going up and up on Steam. And there was a moment when we were just relieved. It's a sentiment that is shared We just said 'we will get to do this again'. That was genuinely great."
- The Making of Baldur's Gate 3: "We really wanted to make it so that even if you don't know D&D or Baldur's Gate, you would still have exciting choices as a player"
- As the "incredible journey" to Baldur's Gate 3 wraps up, Larian Studios has its "full attention" on its next RPG: "The story ain't over yet"
Baldur's Gate 3 had built some level of financial security for itself through its early access release, but Smith's relief at the ability for the studio to go forward to make a new game seems to be a reflection of periods of concern behind the scenes. During a keynote speech at the Digital Dragons conference earlier this month, director Swen Vincke admitted that there were concerns that the RPG would be "impossible to finish" and that Larian's attention to detail might cause budgets to run out.
Clearly that's not been the case, as Larian is already gearing up for "two very ambitious RPGs", one of which is codenamed Excalibur. Sadly, neither of those is Baldur's Gate 4, but the overwhelming success of Baldur's Gate 3 suggests that its developer is safe for a while yet.
Check out our Baldur's Gate 3 review.
