Baldur's Gate 3 Soars on Steam Post-Patch 8, Larian Sets Sights on Next Big Project

The release of the eagerly awaited Patch 8 for Baldur’s Gate 3 has led to a significant surge in player numbers on Steam, setting the stage for developer Larian to shift its focus to its next major project. Launched last week, Patch 8 introduced 12 new subclasses and a new photo mode, sparking renewed interest and bringing players back to the game. Over the weekend, Baldur’s Gate 3 reached a concurrent player peak of 169,267 on Steam, a remarkable achievement for a single-player role-playing game in its second year. While Sony and Microsoft keep PlayStation and Xbox player numbers private, the impact on Steam is clear.

Reflecting on Patch 8's impact, Larian's CEO Swen Vincke expressed optimism about the game's future, citing not only the recent player boost but also the thriving mod support. "Feeling good today about where we are with BG3," Vincke shared on Twitter. "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, concluding a period of critical acclaim and commercial success since its launch in 2023. The game has maintained strong sales through 2024 and into 2025. Larian has surprised the gaming community by announcing its departure from Baldur’s Gate 3 and the Dungeons & Dragons universe to work on a new, undisclosed project, followed by a media blackout to concentrate on this mystery endeavor.

Meanwhile, D&D owner Hasbro has hinted at plans to continue the Baldur’s Gate series. At the Game Developers Conference, Hasbro's SVP of digital games, Dan Ayoub, indicated a strong interest in the franchise 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," Ayoub told IGN. "And actually, in pretty short order, we're going to have some stuff to talk about around that." While Ayoub did not specify whether this would involve a new Baldur’s Gate game or a crossover similar to the previous collaboration with Magic: The Gathering, he expressed a long-term desire for a Baldur’s Gate 4, acknowledging that such a project would take time. "It's somewhat of an unenviable position," he noted. "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."