I’ve been having the time of my life playing through Baldur’s Gate 3 for the past couple of months since the game came out on the PS5. The story is quite immersive, the characters are stellar, and I’ve been playing multiple campaigns at the same time. There are many elements within the narrative that I can pick through and praise for giving me a level of immersion that I haven’t had in a while.
But the most alluring element for me is the romance.
In my opinion, the heart of the story of Baldur’s Gate 3 is love—not necessarily the romantic type, but the love we have for one another. This can be a positive experience, such as if you decide to kiss Wyll or have a romp in the forest with Halsin, or it can be a negative one, such as the toxically abusive relationship Astarion has with Cazador. Everyone, at their core, has a relationship that defines them, even if it’s one with your weapons, as Orin has.
I love that Baldur’s Gate 3 embraces its theme of love in such a way that even the NPCs you come across have their own little stories about love and relationships. I distinctly remember feeling warm when my Dark Urge friend and I had saved a group of gnomes in the Ancient Forge. Two husbands reunited and had dialogue in which one of them was fussing over the other, making sure that they both were safe. And when pressed as to why he was being so fussy, he simply said it’s because he’s his husband, so of course he would.
These same elements are what constantly draw me back to playing BioWare’s Dragon Age and Mass Effect series. I love the lore, but it’s the more intimate moments that make me feel warm and fuzzy. And while BioWare has done an amazing job of executing these story elements, I think Baldur’s Gate 3 did it even better, and I hope that BioWare is taking intense notes.
While I can discuss the way romance was handled in Mass Effect Andromeda, I feel like it would be more ideal to hone in on Dragon Age Inquisition, because that game wasn’t marred by the rushed development. Inquisition is my favorite game by BioWare. It’s the only platinum trophy I have on PSN and has been my most revisited and replayed game ever.
One of the reasons why I love it so much is because of my character’s connection with Dorian. When the relationship eventually develops, it’s sweet. I usually play an elven warrior and am more of the righteous heroic type. In my headcanon, I have the two meet on opposite sides of society—an elf who is righteous and big on eleven culture, and a magister from a society that still sees elves as slaves. You have two men trying to make the world a better place who find themselves in an odd couple type of scenario.
The problem was that I had to rely on headcanon to get through the greater part of the beginning story. There’s a lot of emphasis on creating a grander narrative of an evil that is possibly threatening all of Thedas. You have interconnected relationships and discussions, but you will also go a long time between building relationships.
It’s more of a design flaw than a romantic one. I adore Inquisition, but its excessive content can be overwhelming. If, like me, you invest time in completing numerous small tasks on the map, you may find yourself going for hours without meaningful personal interactions. This can seriously diminish your motivation to continue playing. I often encounter a slump while playing the game due to this issue, and I have to push myself to keep going, buoyed by the hope of encountering more of Dorian’s character eventually.
Contrast that with my experience of romancing Astarion. From the get go, there’s quite a bit of intimate dialogue between him and my character. They started off on the wrong foot, as he hated how goodie-two-shoes my elven paladin is. The disapproval rating was quite high, but eventually, some of the more jokester actions I took, such as finding silver-tongued ways to end our enemies, helped him to warm up to me. I also started helping him learn more about his past, including the strange markings on his back, and all of a sudden, he and my character were harboring feelings for each other.
Early on, they had what I call “the big scene”—the scene in which the fruits of your flirting are gamifyingly achieved, and you see your character get together with your romantic choice. Traditionally, in a BioWare game, such moments require patience. Typically, toward the game’s conclusion, your ongoing flirting is finally acknowledged with a brief, intimate encounter. Subsequently, you might be affectionately addressed as “love” or something equally endearing. While in the past, the anticipation of such endorphin-inducing moments was enjoyable, the gaming landscape is ever-evolving, and romance elements are becoming more intricate. This evolution is particularly evident in Baldur’s Gate 3.
Going back to my romance with Astarion, I was floored by how many small moments he and my character had between them each time I went back to camp. From the subtle changes in Astarion’s tone when addressing me, to the moment in which flirting went to waiting for the others to fall asleep for the two to have an intimate moment together, I was surprised at how many times there was a moment in which the two talked about their feelings for each other, or how my character was planning to help him get revenge on Cazador.
So how can Dreadwolf take this and continue to evolve it? Simply put—add more.
The emphasis on exploration should be minimized so that it’s not to the bloated capacity of Inquisition. Exploration should be rich, such as Act 1 in BG3, but there should be multiple quieter moments for the characters to stop and think about their journey, grow as characters, and possibly fall in love.
This was clearly demonstrated in the concluding Inquisition DLC, Trespasser. The exploration aspect was outstanding. As I previously highlighted in my discussion of BioWare’s approach to romance, Trespasser marked a return to its classic style. It featured well-designed exploration areas that were rich in interactive elements without unnecessary bloat. Additionally, the extra dialogue during specific events near the end of the DLC added depth to the experience. Your romantic interest would express concern about your worsening condition; in my case, it was Dorian and Vivienne discussing their collaborative efforts to find a cure.
The groundwork was present in Trespasser. Larian Studios took the baton and sprinted with it. Now it’s BioWare’s turn to take something great and make it even greater.
Baldur’s Gate 3
23 years on from the release of the seminal RPG, Baldur’s Gate 2, the third game in the series has been developed by Larian Studios (of Divinity: Original Sin fame). Set over 120 years after the events of the last game, Baldur’s Gate 3 tasks you and your party of heroes to fight off a mind flayer invasion of Faerun, while seeking a way to remove the tadpole in your brain that’s slowly turning you into the enemy…
- Platform(s)
- PC, Stadia, macOS, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
- Released
- August 3, 2023
- Developer(s)
- Larian Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Larian Studios
- Genre(s)
- RPG