Players Aren’t Getting Too Wild In Baldur’s Gate 3 Character Creation, And That’s Okay
Baldur’s Gate 3 has been in Early Access for a few days now, and one of the most captivating parts of the game happens right at the start – character creation.
In a Hotfix that arrived just a few days after launch, Larian Studios pulled aggregate data from the character creator to present the “average” character that players are creating, and had a few sassy remarks on the results.
We took the most popular choices in character creation, and recreated this. We thought our analytics system wasn’t working! We checked. It is. Congratulations, you’ve basically made the default Vault Dweller. What the hell guys. We gave you demon eyes, horns, and even tails. We are sorely disappointed. Go crazy. We worked hard on this!
Hotfix #3 – Theft, Death & Hubris, Larian Studios (Steam)
Of course, this subtle dig at player’s simple preferences in character creation (or maybe an effort to create reflections of themselves) then spawned a half dozen blogs, scolding players for their actions.
Dungeons & Dragons (the system Baldur’s Gate 3) is a beautiful thing, and one of my favorite pastimes in life. And If there’s one thing I’ve noticed when players create their first character, it’s that most often they tend to create a reflection of themselves. (Everyone’s second character is then, of course, some absurd joke character with super exaggerated characteristics).
So why are we shaming the way players are roleplaying… In a roleplaying game? I have no problem with Larian’s jokes at the players’ expense – a playful dig, encouraging players to get a little more creative. What I do have a problem with, is a half dozen gaming journalists running away with a quote, farting into a wine glass, and huffing the aroma as they punch up a blog shaming players for playing a game the way they want.
Also, for the recored – my character ended up being a Human Wizard in BG3. Not because I lack creativity, but because that’s the last character I played at my D&D 5E table – and also – because it’s my game and this is what I wanted to do.
Just… Play video games man.
