The latest Baldur’s Gate 3 patch was supposed to be released in closed beta yesterday, but Larian decided to leave it in the oven a little longer due to bugs. Namely, a bug that caused passive rolls – like those that detect traps – to stop working.
Fortunately, if you haven’t signed up for the beta yet, you now have more time to sign up. Scroll down a bit on the RPG’s Steam page and click the “Request Access” button.
On the other side, they’ve taken the opportunity to blog detailing some tantalizing changes, much like delicious soap on a rope. Wait. What. No. Soap is not edible, says spoilsports Larian. As such, they’ve made some wash items more idiot-proof. “We’ve noticed that some of you have bubble hiccups, so the action to wash with soap and sponges is now called ‘Use’ instead of ‘Consuming’.”
Overall, Patch 7 boasts “over 1,000 fixes and improvements,” with the blog itself detailing just a few select highlights. The big ticket items here are extra evil ending cinematics, split screen settings, and a modding toolkit. Apart from these, here are some personal picks. (I say “choices” – my actual preference would be for Larian to give up and go have a milky way and take a nap so I can start a new game.)
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Honor Mode systems – the ultra-tough beef glove for a single game save – will now be selectable in a custom game. In terms of specifics, the wandering boss Dror Ragzlin will now try to befriend the arachnid pit dwellers with a new spell called Arachnid Compulsion if you happen to knock him down.
For your companions, Karlach “will no longer brush the shaved side of his head,” and Astarion may occasionally do something in the camp besides reading books. If you’re too busy being extremely evil to care about friendship, they’ll be more Dark Urge reaction dialogue and narrator lines. But I already made a game of Dark Urge! I groan before realizing that I haven’t made a Dark Urge that turns into a good game. Or Dark Urge, which specifically tries to make Minsc’s life as miserable as possible throughout the game. Larian please.
There’s also a little more help for the final battle. I can understand someone being a little bored with the “alliances you make during your adventure join up for a big dramatic scrap later” but I’m not sure anyone has come up with a better solution yet, for allow you to earn money in your side trips in a reactive and satisfying way? Still, I’m a fan. The Kuo-Toa fish can now engage (unless they all died in one action), and the Gondians will bring in a tough steel beholder.
Optimization is also coming on the performance front. “This will have a more noticeable impact in areas with a large number of NPCs (such as the Lower City) and will reduce peak memory usage when loading levels for the first time,” the blog says. “It will also be noticeable when managing a lot of loot (eg when transferring everything from a camp chest to a character’s inventory).”
Finally, and hell, you’ll no longer be able to try out Shar’s Leap Of Faith trial as “just click on the last platform and let your character find their way there.” Buuuuuu. Buuuuuu. Buuuuuu (boo).
No word on when the patch will be available to everyone, but as mentioned, you can sign up for the beta on the Baldur’s Gate 3 Steam page. I’m very serious about getting Larian to relax so I can finally play the game again. but it’s no doubt impressive to see the game still getting such substantial updates, especially since they’re also working on two more games right now.
