When Baldur’s Gate 3 launches into early access on October 6th, 2020, it will only be available on Google Stadia and Steam. But an announcement today from Larian Studios about what players will need to enable cross-saves hinted that a console port may eventually be in store for the RPG.

The Baldur’s Gate franchise hails from a subgenre of game known as the CRPG, or Computer Role Playing Game. CRPGs are often derived from tabletop RPG rulesets like Dungeons & Dragons; in the case of Baldur’s Gate, the games are actually set in the same world of Dungeons & Dragons. CRPGs are fairly fluid in definition, but are often associated with RPGs that use isometric viewpoints. But despite the word “computer” in CRPG, it’s become increasingly common for these games to eventually be ported to consoles.

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In a post on their forums, Larian Studios announced Larian Accounts, an optional feature that would be a requirement for any players hoping to use cross-save in Baldur’s Gate 3. For now, cross-save will only connect Steam, Google Stadia, and GOG. This will not be a Day 1 feature of early access, but the fact that Larian Studios specified Day 1 indicates it could be a function the studio rolls out later during the early access period for Baldur’s Gate 3. But most importantly, the post said that Larian Accounts would allow cross-saves for “potential future platforms if and when released.” That indicates that a console port of Baldur’s Gate 3 might be in the cards for the RPG.

Larian Studios Eventually Made a Console Port of Divinity: Original Sin 2

This is not hugely surprising, given that Larian Studios last two big games, Divinity: Original Sin and Divinity: Original Sin 2 both eventually made their way to consoles. What console players should keep in mind, though, is that in both cases, there was a big gap of time before the games were ported. Divinity: Original Sin 2, for instance, released in 1.0 in September 2017, but was not released on Xbox One and PS4 until August 2018. It took until September 2019 for the game to make it’s way to the Nintendo Switch. Those delays came after a lengthy year-long early access period on the PC before the game officially launched.

For now, Larian Studios is purely focused on the PC early access for Baldur’s Gate 3. PC gives them the most flexibility to update the game and roll out new features. Players shouldn’t expect free access, however; Larian Studios has gated Baldur’s Gate 3’s early access behind the $60 price of the game. Console players will dodge having to pay for the game early, but they might be in for a considerable wait before Baldur’s Gate 3 becomes available on their preferred platform.

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Source: Larian Studios

Baldur’s Gate 3 releases in Early Access on PC and Google Stadia on October 6th, 2020.

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Caitlin Grieve
(198 Articles Published)

Caitlin has been writing about video games and sci-fi/fantasy books since 2018. Her video game adventures began a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away as an Imperial pilot in Star Wars: TIE Fighter. When she’s not gaming, she’s reading, and when she’s not reading, she’s writing. But she is ALWAYS plotting her next D&D escapades.

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