Summary
One of the biggest selling points ofBaldur’s Gate 3is its romance system, but as interesting as it can be to strike up a relationship with a companion, the options are sometimes still lacking in a key regard. It doesn’t take long to realize how big of a focus romance can be, with companions potentially starting to hit on the player character early in Act 1. Wooing a partner isdependent on raising their approval, but as long as they’re not being consistently antagonized, companions aren’t ultimately that hard to please.
Although it’s hard to argue that romance inBaldur’s Gate 3isn’t fun, the game holds itself to a consistently high standard, especially when it comes to the robust array of choices throughout. Decisions inBaldur’s Gate 3rarely come down to a binary, and figuring out how to make things work when there aren’t just two distinct paths ahead is a lot of what makes the game tick. Relationships do offer some layers of complications, butBaldur’s Gate 3doesn’t always feel like it covers all aspects of the middle ground well.
Rare Baldur’s Gate 3 Interaction Reveals The Best Romance For The Dark Urge
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BG3 Doesn’t Always Make Turning Romances Down Easy
Navigating Gentle Rejection Can Be Weirdly Tricky
The biggestmissing piece ofBaldur’s Gate 3relationshipsappears when turning down romances, a conversation that often needs to be navigated in a sensitive way. Even if moving things forward just isn’t right, the person making advances doesn’t always need to be treated harshly. As long as things are respectful on both ends, it’s often healthier to take a gentle but firm approach to rejection, and in some cases even incompatibility can just be a matter of timing or extenuating circumstances.
InBaldur’s Gate 3, however,some scenarios can be presented as a harsh binary. Reddit userLimp-Wall-5500provides an example where Gale attempts to seek comfort in the night with the player character, a scenario that can play out in Act 2. The two options presented are to stay by Gale’s side until dawn or shoot him down in an aggressively cruel manner, complaining about him “wallowing in self-pity” before bidding him good night.
This particular scene isn’t actually strictly romantic, as staying by his side can be completely platonic, and anyone who cares about a character facing his own mortality should probably opt for it. It can be confusing to navigate, however, as the division between Gale talking about romance and friendship is sometimes very thin, and the platonic version of the scene is a mildly modified version of the romantic option. Even when it comes tooptions that lead directly to romance, the divide is sometimes comparably harsh, which can be troublesome for anyone attempting to build strong platonic relationships.
Gale’s Act 1 behavior was significantly more difficult to navigate closer to the original release ofBaldur’s Gate 3, as a bug would lead to aggressive advances regardless of a player character’s behavior.
A more specifically romantic example lies in Wyll’s offer to dance, which can’t be turned down in any particularly kind way. The easiest way to navigate it is agreeing to the dance and turning him down later, but there’s no good way to set boundaries up front. Wyll’s feelings are significantly hurt by rejection, and there should definitely be an option to politely decline a dance in the first salvo.
Baldur’s Gate 3’s Limited Options Aren’t Game-Breaking
Romance Is Still Great Even With Compromises
Mechanically, the harshness of rejection options inBaldur’s Gate 3isn’t a huge deal, as it’s still possible to garner plenty of approval from companions who have been romantically rejected. When anyone pops big questions about relationships, there usually do end up being reasonable ways to turn them down gently. It’s morethe process of getting there that isn’t always as subtle as would be ideal, and from a roleplay standpoint, it can definitely be more reductive than it needs to be.
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This isn’t the only area whereBaldur’s Gate 3could improve its romance, but it’s one that can be frustrating because of how close it is to getting things right. All the same, it’s possible to play out some great relationships inBaldur’s Gate 3, so it’s best to just forget the harshness of any accidentally severe rejections. Companions seem to, after all, and the threat of the Absolute waits for no hurt feelings.
Source:Limp-Wall-5500/Reddit
Baldur’s Gate 3
Developed and published by Larian Studios, Baldur’s Gate 3 is an upcoming role-playing game set to release in August of 2023. Players will create a character to embark on a large-scale journey and can do so solo or cooperatively with a friend. Combat is a turn-based style this time around.
