Larian Donates Copy of Baldur’s Gate 3 to Library

Highlights

• Libraries offer more than just books, with some lending out video games like Baldur’s Gate 3 to their patrons.
• Larian Studios surprised a librarian by donating a copy of Baldur’s Gate 3, showcasing their generosity and support for fans.
• TeenyGremlin’s request for a tax-free purchase was met with silence, until Larian Studios offered a free copy.

Baldur’s Gate 3 fans are showering Larian Studios with praise following its kind donation of a copy of the game to a local library. The studio surprised a librarian with its generosity, and now gamers who may not have had a chance to play Baldur’s Gate 3 will be able to borrow it.

While it may come as a surprise to some, libraries lend a lot more than physical books these days. Libraries also often have ebooks, CDs, DVDs and Blu-rays, as well as video games and manga to lend to their patrons. Some even go further, lending out things like tools to those who need them. However, it can be complicated for libraries to get everything they want, and that was what spurred one librarian to reach out to Larian Studios directly with a request.

Posting on Reddit, user and librarian TeenyGremlin shared their story of wanting to procure a copy of the award-winning RPG for the library they work at. While their first impulse was to buy it, there was a problem: as the library is a tax-funded organization, they’re not allowed to purchase anything that’s taxed, as it would be “taxing tax,” in their words. Buying the game, even directly from Larian, was proving to be a problem in that regard, so TeenyGremlin sent a message to the studio asking if there was a way that they could possibly purchase it sans tax, via invoice billing or another method. However, months passed and they didn’t hear anything back.

Larian Studios Surprises Baldur’s Gate 3 Fan With Its Generosity

TeenyGremlin had more or less given up on the idea, assuming that their request had essentially been shut down, as it could be a lot of trouble for a studio to go through to just sell one or two copies to a library. However, three months after their initial query, a representative from Larian Studios reached out and offered to simply donate a copy of Baldur’s Gate 3 to the library, for no cost. TeenyGremlin has been shocked by the gesture, and Baldur’s Gate 3 fans in the comments are thrilled, expressing how much they appreciate Larian Studios as a whole.

While there are plenty of gaming studios that have earned fans’ respect, Larian Studios continues to impress the fanbase at large. In addition to producing an extremely content-rich and enjoyable game with no microtransactions of any kind, the studio has gone out of its way to support fellow developers. With the current trend of mass layoffs in the gaming industry, the company has recommended laid off developers apply to Larian Studios, and the game’s director has gone so far as to blame the layoffs on corporate greed, effectively shaming the industry as a whole. While Baldur’s Gate 4 isn’t in the cards for the studio, whatever game it develops next will surely have an eager audience waiting for it.