Following the release of the much-anticipated Patch 8, Baldur's Gate 3 has experienced a significant surge in player numbers on Steam. This boost has positioned developer Larian Studios favorably as they shift their focus to their next major project.
Patch 8, which was launched last week, introduced 12 new subclasses and a new photo mode to Baldur's Gate 3. The excitement around these additions led to a weekend peak of 169,267 concurrent players on Steam—an impressive milestone for a single-player RPG in its second year. It's worth noting that Sony and Microsoft do not disclose player numbers for PlayStation and Xbox.
Reflecting on the impact of Patch 8, Larian's CEO, Swen Vincke, took to Twitter to express his optimism about the game's future. He credited not only the patch but also the thriving mod support for the game's continued success. Vincke stated, "With mod support thriving, I think the game will now continue to do well for quite some time. It gives us room to focus on making our next big thing as good as we can and that focus is more than welcome. We've got big shoes to fill."
Vincke also shared his satisfaction with the development effort behind Patch 8, noting, "Feeling good today about where we are with BG3. Patch 8 got a lot of people playing again. It took a lot of development effort but I'm happy we did it."
Patch 8 marks the final major update for Baldur's Gate 3, concluding a remarkable period for Larian. The game, which launched to critical acclaim and achieved significant commercial success in 2023, has maintained strong sales into 2025.
In a surprising move, Larian announced their departure from the Baldur's Gate and Dungeons & Dragons franchises to work on a new, undisclosed project. This decision was followed by a media blackout to concentrate on their mystery game.
Meanwhile, Hasbro, the owner of D&D, has hinted at continuing the Baldur's Gate series. Speaking at the Game Developers Conference, Dan Ayoub, SVP of digital games at Hasbro, revealed that with Larian moving on, "a lot of people [are] very interested in Baldur's Gate." Ayoub mentioned that Hasbro is formulating plans for the franchise's future and teased that announcements would be forthcoming.
While Ayoub did not specify whether these plans involve a new Baldur's Gate game or another type of project, he expressed a desire for a Baldur's Gate 4 but acknowledged that its development would take time. He emphasized a measured approach, stating, "We're not in a hurry. Right? That's the thing, we're going to take a very measured approach... We've got a lot of plans, a lot of different ways to go about it."
