Baldur's Gate 3 has experienced a significant surge in player numbers on Steam following the release of the much-anticipated Patch 8. This update has positioned developer Larian Studios favorably as they shift focus to their next major project.
Patch 8, released last week, introduced 12 new subclasses to Baldur's Gate 3, along with a new photo mode. This addition sparked renewed interest among fans, leading to a peak concurrent player count of 169,267 on Steam over the weekend—an impressive achievement for a single-player RPG in its second year. While Sony and Microsoft keep PlayStation and Xbox player data private, the Steam numbers clearly indicate the game's enduring popularity.
Reflecting on Patch 8's impact, Larian's CEO Swen Vincke took to Twitter to express optimism about the game's future. He credited not only the player boost from Patch 8 but also the thriving mod support for sustaining interest in Baldur's Gate 3. Vincke noted that this success allows Larian to concentrate on crafting their next ambitious project, acknowledging the high expectations set by Baldur's Gate 3.
Vincke shared, "Feeling good today about where we are with BG3. Patch 8 got a lot of people playing again. It took a lot of development effort but I'm happy we did it. With mod support thriving, I think the game will now continue to do well for quite some time. It gives us room to focus on making our next big thing as good as we can and that focus is more than welcome. We've got big shoes to fill."
Patch 8 marks the final major update for Baldur's Gate 3, signaling the end of a remarkable chapter for Larian. The game, which launched to critical acclaim and achieved substantial commercial success in 2023, has maintained strong sales throughout 2024 and into 2025.
In a surprising move, Larian announced their departure from the Baldur's Gate and Dungeons & Dragons franchise to develop a new, undisclosed game. This decision followed several teases and culminated in a media blackout to focus on this new project.
Meanwhile, D&D's parent company, Hasbro, has hinted at continuing the Baldur's Gate series. Speaking at the Game Developers Conference, Hasbro's SVP of digital games, Dan Ayoub, revealed that with Larian moving on, there is significant interest in the franchise. Ayoub mentioned, "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."
While Ayoub remained vague on whether this "stuff" would be a new Baldur's Gate game or another form of engagement like the previous crossover with Magic: The Gathering, he expressed a long-term desire for a Baldur's Gate 4. He emphasized a measured approach, saying, "It's somewhat of an unenviable position. I mean, 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. We're starting to think about, okay, yeah, we're ready to start dipping toes a little bit and talking about a few things. And I think, in really short order, like I said, again, not to over-tease that point, we're going to have some other things to talk about around that."
