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‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

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Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#281

Post by AlotOfReading »

caskstrength wrote: post #246
jakebasile wrote: post #23

It's a really, really good game. I'm glad they decided to make it turn based vs the real time with pause, though I know that's a somewhat controversial decision (what isn't?). The game itself is beautiful, the music is immersive, the writing is (so far) intriguing, and it runs on Linux with only minor tweaks. The game does wonders to capture the feel of playing a well-DMed campaign. It's no surprise to me that it's g…

>It's a really, really good game. I'm glad they decided to make it turn based vs the real time with pause, though I know that's a somewhat controversial decision (what isn't?). Yes, but naming the game "Baldur's Gate 3" instead of something like "Divinity: Dungeons & Dragons" is, unfortunately, a successful cash-grab. Which is to be expected considering that AFAIK _none_ of the original developers or writers worked o…

What are the characteristics of a "Baldur's Gate" title beyond being a CRPG following DnD rules set in the areas around the city? Because that's all that seems to unite the other titles and BG3 meets it.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#282

Post by lobocinza »

Novosell wrote: post #109
Waterluvian wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There must be at least some partial formula if some companies can consistently make critically acclaimed commercial successes.

Are there any companies continuously making widely different critically acclaimed games? or do they typically have a hit and then make games in the same vein? Bioware had a certain take on RPGs, same with Bethesda's modern Fallout/Elder Scrolls, FromSoft make DS derivatives, etc. If I'm missing some studio which has a diverse catalogue of consistently successful games, then please tell me which. But I feel they usual…

Valve and Obsidian Entertainment have such catalogue but even great studios fail from time to time.

Most will find a formula that works for a niche and stick with it. Which is smart because innovation increases both the chance of achieving something great and of releasing a fiasco.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#283

Post by lobocinza »

mastax wrote: post #18

I am a bit shocked by how popular this game is. All the signs were there, though. - Their previous game Divinity: Original Sin 2 was critically acclaimed, very popular for a pretty hardcore CRPG, and had long legs. - DnD has a lot of brand power and has been strongly in the zeitgeist for years. - There's a big cohort of millennials who have strong nostalgia for Baldur's Gate and who have plenty of money to buy games…

> But those games were generally less accessible, mostly not multiplayer, and again lacked the brand power.

Creative Assembly's Total War series had good and popular games but their popularity exploded when they made a Warhammer game despite the original fanbase preferring historical games and many hoping for a TW Medieval 3. Most games with the Warhammer IP at that time were mediocre at best. So brand doesn't carry on it's own and it helps when your target audience has nothing else that they might be interested to play when your game is released. Diablo 4 sucks and Pillars 2 was released in 2018.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#284

Post by mark38848 »

rejectfinite wrote: post #180
deng wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

According to Metacritic, in addition to the already mentioned people had fun with Metroid Prime Remastered Diablo IV Persona 4 Golden Dead Space Remake Final Fanatasy XVI Pikmin 4 Star Wars Jedi Survivor Hogwarts Legacy Remnant II So this year actually seems to be pretty great w.r.t. AAA games, and the next months will be pretty ridiculous, with Armored Core VI, Starfield, Mortal Kombat 1, Forza Motorsport, Alan Wake…

Noooo you don't get it, only niche pixel indie games can be FUN!!! /s

That has actually been my experience for about ten years now. I've tried TOTK, Elden Ring, Hogwarts Legacy, BG3, and quite a few more and found them not engaging at all. It's not quite as bad as the movies yet, but still bad enough as to not warrant simply playing older or more indie titles.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#285

Post by mark38848 »

whateveracct wrote: post #204
lylejantzi3rd wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interest in Tears of the Kingdom dropped off pretty quickly. Is that all? edit: I didn't play the other two games. One's a remake of a game I never played (I never owned playstations) and I don't really play fighting games. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ edit2: this is getting ridiculous.

What do you mean by "interest" for ToTK? People are still playing it who got it on launch day. I know I am.

I know I stopped after two days.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#286

Post by serf »

AlotOfReading wrote: post #281
caskstrength wrote: post #246

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>It's a really, really good game. I'm glad they decided to make it turn based vs the real time with pause, though I know that's a somewhat controversial decision (what isn't?). Yes, but naming the game "Baldur's Gate 3" instead of something like "Divinity: Dungeons & Dragons" is, unfortunately, a successful cash-grab. Which is to be expected considering that AFAIK _none_ of the original developers or writers worked o…

What are the characteristics of a "Baldur's Gate" title beyond being a CRPG following DnD rules set in the areas around the city? Because that's all that seems to unite the other titles and BG3 meets it.

who knows.

given that the whole dark alliance branch exists and essentially turned the game into something totally different it's not like the precedent for radical change hasn't already been set.

also phrasing 'cash grab' in association to any 'Wizards of the Coast' IP as if it were any kind of surprise seems to be missing their whole business tactic for the past 20+ years.

See: the new Neverwinter Nights branches and the cadre of expansion packs/add-ons/dlcs/campaigns/skins/whatever.

if anything BG3 exhibits less cash-grab behaviors than the entire rest of the portfolio of WotC at the moment.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#287

Post by mark38848 »

imbnwa wrote: post #170
jakebasile wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I like the CRPG genre a lot, but I think one reason that BG3 is taking off is that it _looks_ like a modern AA(A?) game while the rest look basically like Baldur's Gate did in 1998. BG3 lets you see the world in a lot more detail and it helps immerse you in Faerûn. Many people will claim "graphics don't matter", but the reality is that they do help.

>Many people will claim "graphics don't matter", but the reality is that they do help. Yeah, it was hard for me to get into Path of Exile over D3 and D4, despite being a technically 'deeper' game

Graphics might be good in BG3 but the art style is non-existent. Generic clear skies or scorching red purgatory fantasy setting. People flying around on dragons fighting Cthulhu's aunt. Man I'd love being able to love that.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#288

Post by iancmceachern »

handmadeta wrote: post #27
mastax wrote: post #18

I am a bit shocked by how popular this game is. All the signs were there, though. - Their previous game Divinity: Original Sin 2 was critically acclaimed, very popular for a pretty hardcore CRPG, and had long legs. - DnD has a lot of brand power and has been strongly in the zeitgeist for years. - There's a big cohort of millennials who have strong nostalgia for Baldur's Gate and who have plenty of money to buy games…

I don't want to attack you personally but I think your post illustrates an common error in thinking that caused gaming to stagnate for the past decade. I can just hear the army of MBAs making spreadsheets and checklist reflecting exactly this "paint by the numbers" style of thinking. This in turn means that the next ten AAA titles starting production are going to check all these boxes and then ... will still fail. In…

Indeed. This is true for most creative pursuits.

It reminds me of the montage scene in Matrix 4 where all these business types are telling Neo how to make a new hit game, when he already had made one, so he should be telling them.

This difference, is the key difference I've seen in my career between successful startups and ones that fail.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#289

Post by iancmceachern »

jncfhnb wrote: post #41
lylejantzi3rd wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I definitely underestimated the brand power of DnD and Baldur's Gate I think you're trying to put too much of its success on "brand power". Social proof is a thing, but it's not powerful enough to overcome a bad game. Just look at what happened to the Call of Duty and Battlefield franchises. I think it's doing so well because they nailed the execution. The graphics are great. The game hasn't had any opening week di…

> When was the last time a AAA game was truly fun to play? Tears of the Kingdom, Resident evil 4, Street Fighter 6

Red Dead 2 would be my answer.

Re: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ Prepared for 100k Concurrent Players, They’ve Gotten 700K

#290

Post by jakebasile »

paulryanrogers wrote: post #272
lost_tourist wrote: post #268

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sometimes you just have to swallow your pride and watch a couple walkthroughs and character build videos to get into a game from someone who has mastered it; just to get over that hump.

This is why I always bounce hard off RPGs yet love immersive sims with RPG-elements. Traditional CRPGs feel so hostile to players new to the genre, or those without a lot of free time. I would think difficulty sliders could help, though not sure if that's seen as sacrilegious or something.

BG3 does have difficulty levels but even the lowest can be deadly. The game intends for you to save very often, even in combat. F5 is your friend!
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