Baldur’s Gate 3 innovated within the established framework of Dungeons and Dragons by placing a significant emphasis on its characters, making its party of companions the focal point of the game. With a potential follow-up now on the horizon, ensuring that the next game’s party members are equally distinctive will be essential to continuing this success. Baldur’s Gate 3‘s party especially stood out thanks to their unique mix of traits, but balancing these quirks with an accurate representation of the Forgotten Realms lore will be a challenge that the next game must navigate carefully.
While BG3 features a decent representation of various DnD races, it leans more into specific archetypes rather than the broad diversity typically seen in the greater lore. There may be no Dwarves or Dragonborn in the party, but characters like Astarion being a High Elf vampire, or Gale being a human Wizard embedded with Netherese magic, offer memorable twists on more average fantasy character formulas. These unique takes have opened the door for options far beyond the typical DnD fare, leaving Baldur’s Gate 4 stuck with a choice of returning to more conventional characters or embracing even wilder picks in the future.
The Hybrid Nature of Characters like Astarion Provides Flexibility in Party Race Composition
Baldur’s Gate 3’s Innovation Shined Over Familiarity
The game’s ability to blend familiar fantasy tropes with tragic and bizarre character backstories played a key part in many players forging strong connections between players and Baldur’s Gate 3‘s variety of companions. Previous BG titles experimented with the archetypes of some party members, but the cinematic presentation of the third entry took this to unprecedented heights. Not only does someone like Astarion have a firm place in the player’s camp, but his character arc revolves around coming to terms with his vampiric heritage.
In the context of cut content, it appears that the party was originally intended to be even more diverse. Baldur’s Gate 3‘s cut Bard companion Helia would have been an elderly Halfling werewolf, adding some much-needed height variance to the party. Larian ultimately seems to have scaled back on quirkiness by excluding her, however, as there already exists a mix of a vampire and an interdimensional Githyanki in the content players ended up getting.
The Next Baldur’s Gate’s Party Has to Balance Tradition and Experimentation
Gimmicks Can’t Overshadow Core Identity
The precedent set by characters like Astarion encourages the continuation of bold archetype blends in BG4, and this could be one of the most effective ways to emphasize whatever the theme of that game will be. The style of BG3 shouldn’t simply be imitated without a solid foundation justifying the presence of party member types that haven’t had much spotlight in fantasy RPGs before, however, as this risks diluting the impact of a new cast. Hybrid or unconventional companions in Baldur’s Gate 4 should be crafted with respect to them as more than just flashy additions meant to match the popularity of Astarion and Lae’zel, they need to serve the world in meaningful ways that don’t undermine the emotional depth of the party as a whole.
Honoring the Source Material Before Delving Headfirst into Iteration
All the different DnD permutations that the next Baldur’s Gate could explore in cinematic detail are an exciting prospect. However, it’s equally important to keep the setting grounded by exploring characters and races that haven’t yet had their time in the spotlight. The likes of gnomes and half-orcs deserve their own fleshing out as companions before a new narrative distracts from them with deeper-cut lore. If Baldur’s Gate 4 is to honor its legacy, it should strive to balance its own sense of unique identity with the remaining areas of the core DnD mythos.
