The director of Baldur’s Gate 3, Swen Vincke, recently shared some interesting details about the content that didn’t make it into the final version of the game. Despite being one of the largest and most comprehensive games we’ve ever played, there were still some surprises left on the cutting room floor. If you’ve ever been curious about the villains that were almost companions or the iconic locations that didn’t quite make the cut, keep reading. Warning: Spoilers ahead for Baldur’s Gate 3!
Vincke spoke to IGN at GDC last week, where we discovered that Larian Studios has no plans for developing DLC or a sequel to BG3. However, he did discuss a variety of other subjects in the meantime. During development, there were discussions about including companions who could potentially convince the main antagonist, Ketheric Thorm, to join the party in Act Two. However, this idea was ultimately removed from the game when we had to adjust our scope. We were stuck on Act Two and had to figure out how to fix it.
Vincke provided further details, describing the impact the addition would have had on the game: “The character was originally intended to be present in your camp while you were dealing with Gortash and Orin. He became a reliable source of information and someone you could count on to guide you through his journey. You might find yourself swayed to join his cause. So it was an amazing story, but yeah.”
What made the game even more captivating were the hidden locations that players could never explore, harkening back to an earlier stage of development when the maps were much smaller. These locations featured a return to Candlekeep (where the first Baldur’s Gate began), a visit to the Gith Astral Plane, a venture to Githyanki queen Vlaakith’s palace, and even a trip to Hell itself; unfortunately, it didn’t happen. Vincke elaborated on the topic:
“There was a time when the maps were going to be smaller, allowing for a greater variety of locations to be explored.” However, the issue arises when a sense of exploration is lacking. That’s why we eliminated a large number of them. It was quite a delicate balance to determine the optimal size of these things, but we ended up writing a substantial amount.
Did you prefer having Ketheric Thorm as a companion character or exploring the infernal realm of Avernus? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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