As we continue to enjoy multiple playthroughs of the year-and-a-half-old Baldur's Gate 3, the future of the franchise remains a topic of keen interest, especially with developer Larian stepping away. Fortunately, Hasbro, the franchise's owner, seems poised to reveal plans for Baldur's Gate in the near future.
During an interview with IGN at the Game Developers Conference, Dan Ayoub, Hasbro's SVP of digital games, shared that there is significant interest in the Baldur's Gate series following Larian's departure. "We're kind of working out our plans for the future and what we're going to be doing with that. And actually, in pretty short order, we're going to have some stuff to talk about around that," Ayoub stated.
While Ayoub didn't specify whether this "stuff" would be a new Baldur's Gate game or a crossover event like the one with Magic: The Gathering, he expressed a desire for a Baldur's Gate 4. However, he emphasized that creating such a game would be a time-consuming process. "It's somewhat of an unenviable position," he said, highlighting the need for a measured approach. "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."
Ayoub also acknowledged the immense pressure to deliver a worthy successor to Baldur's Gate 3, noting that this pressure extends to other Dungeons & Dragons-related projects as well. "I'm never one to shy down from a challenge," he remarked, expressing optimism about how high expectations can drive creativity and innovation. "And I think anything that forces us to raise our creative bar, and developers love to have a high bar to go after... We would keep raising the bar and everyone just tries to go a little higher."
In addition to discussing Baldur's Gate, Ayoub touched on various other topics, including Magic: The Gathering, Hasbro's partnership with Saber Interactive, and the company's broader game strategy. Look out for our full interview with Ayoub next week for more insights.
Every IGN 10 of 2023
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