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Baldur's Gate III

Baldur's Gate III on PS5

Despite the fact there are some little bugs in Baldur's Gate 3 it comes out as one of the greatest releases in 2023, though there are some slow parts compared to pc version. Most important is to understand that this game is turn-based, so its much more different than the release from 2004.

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When I heard about the upcoming full release of Baldur's Gate III many years ago I returned to my memories based on Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II, which was one of my favourites back then. It is also the last game I've played in the Baldur series. When I heard the upcoming release combat was going to be turn-based, I was a bit disappointed as I favour games that happen in real-time more than strategic ones. But I had very good memories from Divinity and Pillars of Eternity and even some experience from my teenage years when I tested role playing with a turn-based role playing game called "Road to the Stars 2300" with a game master. Those times encouraged me to give Baldur's Gate III a chance.

First impressions are excellent: A striking loading screen, a diverse selection of settings from tutorial functions to smaller tweaks, and some ready-made characters when starting a new game. Of course, you can also create and customize your own character in terms of backgrounds, abilities and versatile appearance. Only the facial models have gone feel a little lacklustre, as there are only ten of them for each character type. Instead, there are significantly more details in other areas. From make-up to tattoos, scars and numerous hair models, not forgetting the large selection of colours for each.

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Your adventure kicks off with a glorious cinematic which primes your story and gives more meat to the bones. Later on, the number of cutscenes is even slightly exaggerated, but it is perfect for an adventure that progresses at a leisurely pace - they are like small plays in between the battles and conversations with characters. I also give a lot of praise to the members of my group, because they cannot be described as traditional computer-controlled characters who repeat the same sentences from one situation to another. In short, you can summarize that they are like real people, whose behaviour and actions change according to their personal chemistry, their own personality and chosen speech patterns. You experience this especially when you camp to heal wounds caused in battles, and talk about the latest twists and turns of your tale.

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Larian Studios also scores points for allowing travel companions to be found at the beginning quite easily, as long as you don't go ahead without exploring. The tutorial also warns about this: going alone or in a smaller group gives you a much lower chance of surviving. You can turn off the tips if you want, but there is no harm in seeing them every now and then. At the beginning, however, advisory text boxes appear on the screen quite frequently. I'd like to share a little tip with beginner adventurers: it's really worth getting to know the shortcut paths of the game controller. The going is much smoother when you manage these properly.

Baldur's Gate III

You could say that in this type of game the amount of stuff is not surprising, but it cannot be overstated how much has been sprinkled in the environment, and how much I wanted to grab. Despite the calm pace of progress, after a little over five hours of adventuring, over one hundred items weighed down my adventurers backpacks. This can be partly explained by my kleptomaniac nature when it comes to video games, but I was still amazed by the massive amount of things to pick up. Of course, everything has a price and money accumulates in the cash register at a steady pace, but it can always be discussed whether it is worth all the time spent, as I browsed through the items for sale at the merchant's for about a quarter of an hour. In part, this is explained by PlayStation's DualSense controller, which is in no way comparable to a PC or mouse in terms of speed and accuracy. Fortunately, filters have been put on the goods, but it would have been much easier with, for example, an automatic identification system for scrap and other useless goods, which would enable the sale to the buyer with a few clicks. However, big points for the game development team, that by holding down the X button your character can search for many items at a distance of several meters at the same time, which makes collecting convenient. This, too, has its own downside, as the controlled team member walks at their own pace from one shelf and box to another, picking up the indicated object only then. A faster point and click system without animation would be better and above all faster. When looking at the goods, you can also see their value and properties, but the annoying side is that the information boxes flicker sometimes and thus disturb the reading.

Exploring places is made much easier by the convenient and detailed map, to which you can also add your own markings with accompanying texts if necessary. Darkened spots reveal new areas as they open, making it easier to travel towards the unknown. Gameplay is also improved by fast travel points, which can be used regardless of location. There are also special camps, which you can jump into whenever necessary. After refuelling and sleeping, the adventure continues from the same point where it left off. However, you never know what's coming, and that kind of surprise is one of the best things about Baldur's Gate 3. There are also often several different solutions available for each issue you face. Should we pick the lock of the back door? Or try to trick the guard into opening the door with cunning? Or maybe we'll break in through the back door or forcefully push through the floor hatch and surprise everyone inside? Or just use brute force or magic to continue sneaking. Such situations always fascinate when the player is given the opportunity to choose their own solution. However, selecting certain speech lines or a manoeuvre performed in a combat situation always requires a 20-sided dice roll in addition to the selection of boosters, which come up perhaps too often. More typically, these happen behind the scenes, especially during battles, when - for example - the text "failed!" or "saved!" appears on the screen, depending on the luck of the dice. It's a part of the D&D experience, but for those who aren't fans, it might be a little jarring.

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Baldur's Gate III

With more than 30 hours of gameplay, Baldur's Gate 3 has already managed to convince me that this is one of the best releases this year. However, I emphasize the words I said at the beginning of the review, that I value real-time action more than turn-based, as I experienced it with Dark Alliance II 19 years ago. At an older age, I can still appreciate an adventure that progresses at a leisurely pace, where you can freely explore, fight, get to know new people and use your imagination to solve situations on a slower tempo. Human relationships and their development within the team naturally also create their own fascinating world. Of course, there are more than four people who are suitable for the adventurous group, but you can invite the potential wanderers you meet to your own camp, from where you can bring them into the group if you want. Larian Studios has also acted smartly in that the new member in the group is not a level one greenhorn, but can be given the same amount of accumulated experience levels as the veterans in the group. New levels don't always come quickly, but when they do they give a significant boost. One thing is still exaggerated: when my character got a new level, no less than 39 spells were thrown in front of him, of which I could choose 2. This kind of slows down a little too much in places, especially for a player like me, who wants to choose only the best options, without waiting too long.

At the time of writing this review, we have already received a few updates that will further improve the experience with fixes. However, there is one thing to note in multiplayer and that is that there's never really one leader for the group. Everyone can get involved in conversations, romances, and more, so if you're looking to lead a merry band of your friends just know they're not restricted even if you're the host.

Baldur's Gate III

If you like a calmer and more strategic approach, small bugs don't bother you, and you have enough patience when handling a lot of stuff, the console version of Baldur's Gate 3 is worth of every penny in the adventure role-playing game market, both alone and with friends.

09 Gamereactor UK
9 / 10
+
Very stylish design, huge amount of content, versatile character customizations, attractive plot, heaven for looters, surprising, personable co-adventurers
-
Slow handling with the huge amount of goods, small bugs in sounds and inventory, sometimes frustratingly slow tempo due to continuous dice rolls, partially long loading times
overall score
is our network score. What's yours? The network score is the average of every country's score

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