Larian Studios made it clear a few months back that their next game wouldn't be set in the Forgotten Realms, but the developer had started working on Baldur's Gate 4 before scrapping the project for a few reasons.
Speaking with PC Gamer, Larian CEO Swen Vincke revealed that the studio was originally open to the idea of more Baldur's Gate, as they were in a vulnerable state following the release of the third entry in the series. "So if something is super successful, obviously everyone's [asking] you, 'When are you going to make the next one?", Vincke said. "And when you, as a developer, come out of this little miserable cave that you've been sitting in for many, many hours as you're finishing your thing, you're vulnerable."
In the beginning, Larian didn't go on working on Baldur's Gate 4 but rather on an expansion of the third entry in the series because it was considered to be the easiest route to take, as they had the engine and everything else already for the creation of more content. Progress was quick due to the production machine still being warm, but eventually, the project was retooled as a new game, as Vincke and his team didn't feel like working on this expansion for three years was worth it. The same, however, happened when the project became Baldur's Gate 4, and when the idea of scrapping the project was brought to the developers, the consensus was to move on. Sadly, it sounds like we are really missing out, as Baldur's Gate 4 was in a partially playable state, and players would have really loved it, according to Vincke.
Baldur's Gate 3 is now available on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. You can learn more about one of the best role-playing games ever released by checking out my review.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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