In context: Divinity Original Sin 2 developer Larian Studios’ next major party-based RPG, Baldur’s Gate 3, was supposed to launch through Steam’s Early Access program this month. Sadly, Covid-19 complicated the game’s development, forcing the studio to delay the title to an unknown date.
Now, a couple weeks later, Larian has finally revealed the new release date: September 30, 2020. That means that come this fall, you’ll be able to explore the land of Faerun with up to three friends (or by yourself) on an intense, dimension-spanning Dungeons & Dragons adventure.
This information was revealed during today’s BG3 “Panel From Hell” livestream, which featured prominent industry figure Geoff Keighley, Larian studio head Swen Vicke, Senior Writer Adam Smith, and Wizards of the Coast designer Chris Perkins.
In addition to revealing the release date, the panelists used the livestream as an opportunity to show off some fresh BG3 gameplay, answer a few community questions about the title, and update fans on Larian’s progress so far.
According to the team, Baldur’s Gate 3’s Early Access version will be substantially meatier than Divinity Original Sin 2’s. Whereas DOS2 had about 22 combat encounters initially, Baldur’s Gate 3 will have 80, and the latter’s 596 interactable characters absolutely dwarfs the former’s measley 142.
That doesn’t mean that completing Baldur’s Gate 3’s Early Access content will take significantly longer — like DOS2, Larian expects most players to finish the EA content in around 20-30 hours. However, Baldur’s Gate 3’s EA will be significantly more replayable, with unprecedented reactivity and branching choices, both in and out of dialogue.
If you’re eager to get your hands on Baldur’s Gate 3 next month, you might be wondering what sort of system you’ll need to run it. Fortunately, Larian has you covered: the title’s minimum and recommended PC system requirements have been revealed. See them below.
Recommended:
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- Processor: Intel i7 4770k / AMD Ryzen 5 1500X
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB / AMD RX580
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 70 GB available space
Minimum:
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- Processor: Intel i5-4690 / AMD FX 4350
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GTX 780 / AMD Radeon R9 280X
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 70 GB available space
Those requirements aren’t too hefty, and Larian notes that they will decrease over time, as Baldur’s Gate 3 undergoes further optimizations throughout its development cycle.