Over the last decade, RPGs have become more action-driven and cinematic, trading fixed camera perspectives and methodical D&D-inspired combat for FPS gunplay and frenetic Soulslike precision. Games like Icewind Dale and Neverwinter Nights are exceedingly niche, often relegated to the realm of double-A or indie, with Obsidian even attempting to usher Pillars of Eternity into the mainstream with the Elder Scrolls-like spin-off Avowed.
So, when Larian Studios announced that it was moving Baldur's Gate 3 out of Starfield's orbit to avoid being completely eclipsed under nearly ten years of anticipation, it made sense. A legacy cRPG sequel hoping to compete with a Bethesda tentpole? Fat chance.
Yet, in a surprise turn of events, Baldur's Gate 3 completely overshadowed Starfield, and the cRPG went on to become an award-winning, record-breaking hit, setting a new gold standard for the genre. There have been other mechanically-dense, old school RPGs in recent years, like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, which — despite the lack of awards under its belt — was a smash hit, but it's hard to find modern games that scratch the same itch.
Fans did flock back to the Divinity: Original Sin duology (perfect timing with...
