What you need to know
- The Game Awards 2023 took place today, Dec. 7, showcasing several new game announcements and revealing award winners.
- Following Baldur's Gate 3 getting crowned Game of the Year, the game shadow dropped on Xbox Series X|S.
- The popular RPG that takes place in the Dungeons and Dragons world already released for PC and PlayStation earlier this year so this is very exciting news for Xbox fans.
- Oddly enough, the Xbox shadow drop wasn't mentioned at all during The Game Awards 2023.
After Baldur's Gate 3 won Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2023, the game shadow dropped on Xbox Series X|S. This is very happy news for Xbox fans who had to watch like sad puppies sitting outside in the rain while PC and then PlayStation 5 enjoyed the game earlier this year.
What a night. Thank you to everyone who voted in #TheGameAwards. Baldur's Gate 3 is out now on PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox Series X|S pic.twitter.com/vBlGxY5GN8December 8, 2023
The weird thing about this Xbox Series X|S shadow drop is that it wasn't mentioned at all during The Game Awards 2023. It was tweeted later by Larian Studios after the show had ended. This an odd turn of events considering that Larian Studios previously stated in November via a tweet that the "exact release date" for Xbox would release at The Game Awards.
Regardless, the game is now officially out for Xbox Series X|S players to enjoy, so you can go and see what all the hype has been about.
You can view an official Baldur's Gate 3 trailer above. Unfortunately, Baldur's Gate 3 is not on Xbox Game Pass, but that isn't surprising. We're covering The Game Awards 2023 live, this year like usual so tune in with us on our live blog for commentary and news on the latest information from the event.
What is Baldur's Gate 3 about?
If you haven't played what is now officially the best game of the year, then you should consider checking it out. Baldur's Gate 3 is a role-playing game with plenty of strategic elements. Players start off by crafting a unique character and can choose from 11 races and 12 classes while doing so. The choices you pick in the character creator determine what kind of dialogue is available to you in the game and how NPCs treat you.
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This adventure plays a lot like the table RPG Dungeons and Dragons where a narrator explains the scenarios you find yourself in, but you are free to explore and get to determine what actions you take. You will then need to roll a die (or dice in some situations) to see if your actions are successful and reap the rewards or consequences of your decisions. What really makes Baldur's Gate 3 stand out is how far-reaching some of the effects of your decisions are. It's a truly complex game that allows you to play the way you want and doesn't shoehorn you into making any specific choices.
As far as actual gameplay goes, players get to control their party of characters freely around the overworld, but when you come upon an enemy the game shirts to turn-based combat. In combat, there are dozens of options available to you and you can get incredibly creative with your movements.
So what's the story about? Basically, you've been captured by evil Mind Flayers who have put a worm into your eye that should turn you into another mindless Mind Flayer. However, for some reason, you keep your free will and gain powers by using the worm. Eventually, you join up with other similarly infected individuals while trying to decide whether or not to find a way to remove the worm or utilize its powers. But along the way you travel around a rich fantasy world and come upon a wide range of locations, characters, and enemies.
