Role playing games (RPGs) dominate the modern gaming market, especially in the past few years. Baldur’s Gate 3, in particular, rocked the boat by taking home the Game of the Year Award in 2023. Larian, an independent (indie) developing studio, not only had critical acclaim to the title, but also took fans by storm in more ways than one. Up against publishing behemoths such as Nintendo with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Epic Games with Alan Wake 2, Larian showed dedication to their player base, art, and the craft of storytelling can inspire a player to make the wildest choice and solve problems hundreds of ways. This is not to say other games in 2023 weren’t also great. Some are saying it was one of the best years from video gaming so far. Baldur’s Gate 3, however, left an impression that will be hard to forget.
I, admittedly, am not very far into the game myself. The impact it has had on me as a nonbinary gamer, however, can’t be understated. My introduction to Baldur’s Gate 3 came from rumblings on one of my favorite video game podcasts. Hearing about the ridiculously, hilarious situations the podcaster found themselves in was entertaining, but it took my best friends telling me about the customization of characters for me to give it a chance. I had never tried a video game like this before, but the Dungeons and Dragons (DnD) player in me felt up to the task, so off to the Steam Store my wife went (thanks hun!).
Baldur’s gate was still $59.99, with a digital deluxe DLC add-on being $9.99. I knew the graphics were going to be amazing, not just from my friends’ comments, but the file size was massive. I could only hope that meant the graphics were good, but little did I know, the game really was huge to go with its charm. The possibilities were endless. It all started with the bright green play button on Steam.
May the Games Begin
The game launched with ease. I was blown away by the beautiful graphics and interesting, though CREEPY, opening scene. Then, the character customization loaded in. The details were stunning. I was instantly sucked into all the available races I had known through DnD for so long. The menus were a little tricky, but offered so much detail I missed “the game changer”; the gender selection. Right at the top, I saw the standard gender selection scroll. I figured this was going to be the basic selection seen in basically all major games these days. Male or Female?
As I investigated what male or female look I wanted my foreboding dragonborn to have, I clicked the scroll from male to female when it hit me. The appearance didn’t change. My female labeled lizard was still well-equipped. Surely my computer was lagging? These graphics are amazing but maybe I should update my graphics card? I clicked the slider again, waiting for the game to catch up when it finally clicked. “Non-binary” was now in the scroll options and I froze.
Wait, WHAT?!
No graphical errors. No latency issues. Larian had set the bar I was hoping other major games would reach. Non-binary was a selectable option for my character gender. Furthermore, it was completely up to me what that meant. Gender and sex were finally separate and completely customizable. It took a long time for me to fully process this. As it set in, I spent longer building any character I could. It took over an hour for my character to be complete, playing with every combination I could. Exploring what I connected with in the moment, I saw the possibilities were beyond my expectations. I had my first truly non-binary character. No stereotypes portrayed. No tweaking the outfit to make them feel less like one gender or the other. This character was mine to make as I please. When finished, my majestic dragonborn came to life.
This was huge. Non-binary people can define their own ways of presenting themselves through their characters, but this can go even farther. Anyone who doesn’t quite fit in the confined boxes can break free. Intersex and transgender individuals can deeply build and connect their own narratives too, all because a developer has finally acknowledged gender and sex aren’t the same and put that knowledge into action. The best part is how it seems like such a simple small detail. The game doesn’t care what gender your character is or what you put in their pants, which is how it should be! This choice the developers made is purely for the exploration and enjoyment of the player with no limits.
My First but Not THE First
I know other non-binary characters exist in video games. This is part of the reason I started blogging, to branch out. I’m tired of AAA titles featuring the same gender narratives or troupes. I still love playing them but it would be nice to see sites unseen and stories untold. I feel like I’m not alone on that front in general, especially when discussing gender. It seems when the gender queer want to take up space, they have to carve it out for themselves in smaller independent titles. Even then, being heard is a whole different challenge. It’s also what makes DnD so special. Your only limit is your imagination …and well, whether the dice say you can (shout out to Dungeon Master’s for putting up with players’ crazy antics). Baldur’s Gate 3 could not embody that in their game more.
That night I finished the tutorial of the game before I took time to process it. A simple label is all it took to completely change every expectation I had for playing this game. I understood the hype. For me, it was gender, but Baldur’s Gate 3 changed a lot of gaming perspectives. No in-game purchases or micro-transactions were present. Endless replayability was available between classes, races, play styles, and just the bare dialogue options. This doesn’t even look at the massive amount of testing trials and communications Larian did for years before release. They also maintain communication with players as they patch and add even more content to the game at no extra cost.
Into the Unknown
My lovely lizard has a long way to go in exploring the world of Baldur’s Gate 3, but I simply could not be more impressed. Everytime I jump in, I have a great time exploring the world and story through my connection with my first nonbinary character. The freedom of being the character I want to be to that level is sorely lacking in much of the mainstream games on the market, not to mention Game of the Year winners. With Larian’s success, I hope that changes. I want more games to help players express themselves and explore that freedom. That’s what video games do for players. I also hope this is the start of indie games getting more recognition for the creative storytelling that is present. One simple decision made all the difference to me. Larian, thank you for giving me that choice.
Links:
- Baldur’s Gate 3 website (press kit locations as well): https://baldursgate3.game/
- Larian’s Website: https://larian.com/
- Steam Stats as of writing:
- 37.4 hours on record
- 7 of 54 achievements
- Playing on Baldlur’s Gate 3 (PC version) with Digital Deluxe Editional DLC
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This post is not sponsored. All thoughts and opinions have been made independently through experience and time spent with the game.