Baldur’s Gate III dominates the Steam charts with record numbers, surpassing the 800,000 concurrent player mark on Aug. 6. To be precise, the highest number is 814,666, making it the highest ranked PC game ninth, when sorted by all peak time variables – right after the Hogwarts Legacy. That’s an impressive feat, given that the game has been out for almost three years now, albeit in Early Access, allowing developer Larian Studios to slowly perfect it based on player feedback. The full version of the game was released on August 3rd on PC and shows no signs of slowing down.

While Baldur’s Gate 3’s release schedule may place it without major competitors, it has been well received thanks to its deep plot, characters, and odd romantic choices. All are determined by statistics and rolling the dice. It’s simple Dungeons & Dragons RPG mechanics, filtered to suit a new audience of gamers who are tired of too many microtransactions, in-game purchases, and the need for an always-on internet connection. Even cosmetics included in the Deluxe Edition are given away for free to those who support the development by purchasing the Early Access version, as a kind gesture. Such a smooth understanding between players and developers is sure to yield good results – results that have now exceeded Larian Studios’ expectations.

Last week, Larian CEO Swen Vincke tweeted that he had told his IT team to expect Baldur’s Gate 3 to cross the 100,000 player mark. Still, the results were stunning, with the game breaking through the 500,000 limit post-launch, placing it just below the giants of Counter-Strike’s multiplayer:
Global Offensive and Dota 2. When he crossed the 800,000 threshold mentioned above, Vincke was mainly concerned that there were no more game-breaking bugs. “God, I hope there aren’t any major errors left,” he said in an interview. “I don’t want that anger against me, but that’s part of the risk in making these really big RPGs.” Their previous title, Divinity:
Original Sin II, which also features turn-based and DnD-based combat, peaked at just over 93,000 players.

Baldur’s Gate 3 sales figures are currently unclear, but moving the PC version from the original August 31 to August 3 has clearly worked in their favor, helping them avoid a series of big hits like Armored Core VI:
EA’s Fires of Rubicon, Immortals of Aveum and Starfield (until September). What’s surprising about this achievement is that in theory, Baldur’s Gate 3’s turn-based RPG design is something that’s out of place in mainstream games these days, but fans and newbies alike flock to it regardless. mortgage 20 years from the previous part. It’s really so broad and deep that it worries some online developers that it won’t become a new standard for RPGs. Naturally, this also caused some negative reactions. It’s a strong contender for Game of the Year right now – garnering almost the same level of hype as last year’s Elden Ring.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is out now on PC. The PS5 version releases on September 6, while the Xbox platforms may not be released until 2024.