Brace yourself, adventurers, for the digital gates are about to swing open to the illustrious city of Baldur’s Gate. On the cusp of a much-anticipated global launch, Baldur’s Gate 3, the sequel to the acclaimed Dungeons & Dragons RPG spinoff, is set to descend upon the gaming realm on August 3, at least on the PC.
Developed by Larian Studios, this monumental installment in the series will be fully available on desktops later this week as the PlayStation 5 version prepares for its debut on September 6. Details about an Xbox version remain shrouded, though Larian has confirmed that it won’t be available any sooner than next year.
Unfortunately, while many are looking forward to playing Baldur’s Gate 3, Larian had to drop two pieces of bad news days ahead of its launch – you’ll need to prepare 150GB of free space and you can’t preload the game.
The journey to the final release of Baldur’s Gate 3 has been as arduous and winding as a dungeon crawl. It has been in Early Access for years, allowing players to engage with the game and provide crucial feedback to shape its development. This has not only fine-tuned the gameplay mechanics but allowed Larian to nurture a game that promised a profound role-playing experience, deep character customization, and intricate decision-making process that influences the narrative, reputedly boasting a mind-boggling 17,000 endings.
The actual time of the global launch on PC will vary by region, with Los Angeles players able to commence their campaigns at 8 am PDT, New York and Quebec at 11 am EDT, and so forth across various time zones. The game, unfortunately, does not offer preloading. Simply put, you will not be able to download Baldur’s Gate 3 before the launch. This is primarily due to the nature of its Early Access presence and Steam’s handling of game preloading, which is incompatible with what is effectively a colossal patch.
Larian has confirmed that Baldur’s Gate 3 sports a monstrous file size of around 122 GB. Due to the absence of preloading, players must brace for a significant download on launch day. So, make sure your storage space can accommodate this, and, more importantly, prepare for a potential overnight wait before you can begin your expedition.
According to Michael Douse, Director of Publishing at Larian, players should reserve about 150GB of free space, to be safe.
While this large file size may sound daunting, it’s not surprising when considering the scope of Baldur’s Gate 3. The game’s sweeping narrative that unfolds across numerous acts, abundant character races and classes, and several maps to explore. However, it raises a pertinent question about the enormity of modern games and the challenges posed by the lack of file compression.
Ultimately, this is a topic for another day. Baldur’s Gate 3 will likely prove that it’s worth the install size. Thankfully, Sony is introducing an update that lets the PS5 support 8TB SSDs.
It’s clear that Larian Studios has been meticulous in honing the game during its Early Access phase. With the full release a few days away, players across the globe are on the precipice of diving into an adventure teeming with rich lore, intricate strategy, and a world so vast it promises to keep them engrossed for potentially hundreds of hours.
While the lack of preloading and the substantial download size may seem like initial hurdles, remember that the greatest adventures often have the most challenging beginnings.
Get ready to roll your character and embark on an epic journey of a lifetime in Baldur’s Gate 3.
