Recent reviews by TheRedRoom

I don't really review games. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a lot of games, and recommend a number of them to my close friends. A game has to *really* blow me away for me to bother sitting down and writing a review. Baldur's Gate 3 is one of those games, easily.

I'll highlight a *few* things I think are particularly stellar:

Story and Quests: There is a metric ♥♥♥♥-ton of stuff to do in this game. The game is structured into three acts, each with their own (varied) settings and narrative beats. As such, the quests can be broken down essentially within the act structure, and most quests are contained within the acts. Act I and Act III are filled with quests. I have done three playthroughs (only one complete though), and I *still* have not done every quest, every activity, and every dungeon. Every time I *think* I've done it all, I see a video or a clip of something else that I totally missed. Taking your time with this game, exploring, diving into the quests and the people surrounding them is immensely rewarding.

Companions: Larian Studios has taken immense care in providing (almost) every companion with great personal arcs, quests and character beats. You will fall in love with them. They are varied, flawed, compelling. Even the ones you might think are off-putting and weird can really surprise you. Don't dismiss any of them out of hand. I felt deep satisfaction (and betrayal) when I did their questlines, and the consequences of your actions have a deep impact on how their stories unfold. It really is amazing how organic the interactions can feel.

That being said, I think the player needs to know that in order to fully get the most out of the companions, you need to *constantly* talk to them, check in on them, and make decisions with them in mind. Half of my time I spent just going between each companion and talking to them about their thoughts, and they have a lot of thoughts. Its well worth it, especially if one piques your interest. You miss *a lot* if you don't rush over to your companions to talk to them, and sometimes that can lead to disastrous and even deadly consequences if you ignore them and their desires.

Setting: This is a fully realized world. It helps when you have a wide and deep pool to choose from, as this game uses the Dungeons and Dragons's backdrop of Faerun to set the story in. You will see, meet, and possibly sleep with a few interesting entities along the way. Its really in depth and the lore is amazing if you take the time to learn and engage with it.

Now onto the part that I think is lacking:

Character creation: While it is sizable, its not quite up to where I think it should be. While the Dungeons and Dragons mechanics are faithfully reproduced (with game balancing limitations), the appearence editing itself is... limited. You get a wide variety of hairstyles (and colors), tattoos, and races to choose from, you only *really* get six faces to choose from. No really deep sculpting. You don't even really get to sculpt your body size. You get on avg 4 body types (and that's heavily race dependent. Dragonborns get like two). No sliders, no weight, nothing. On balance, the game excels in a bunch of other things, so this wasn't a dealbreaker, but I just wished it offered more freedom.

Overall, this game is great! It was my first Larian Studios game, and my first Baldur's Gate game. Suffice to say, they made a great impression. I will be looking into their future products with great interest.

Get the game, ♥♥♥♥ a squidman or a bear, why not?

Dice Game Simulator.

First Ghost Hunt: Walk in the house. Ghost appears RIGHT in front of me immediately. Died on the inside.

Also:

Salt costs 15 dollars.

10/10

crashes like my hopes and dreams