Baldur's Gate 3 - Patch 8 Is Big, Beautiful And Sad

Forbes

15-04-2025

Baldur's Gate 3
Credit: Steam
The final patch for Baldur's Gate 3 drops on April 15, but why?
It doesn't seem like Larian Studios had any idea this game was going to turn into the smash hit that it became. Baldur's Gate 3 swept the Game of the Year awards across the industry and became the best-selling title in Steam history.
The game has more than 655,000 positive reviews to fewer than 8,000 negative ones on Steam, and in the early morning before its final patch, there were nearly 37,000 people online 'in-game.'
It sucks to know that Patch 8 will be the last one, but at least it is stacking up to be a humongous update. Here's everything you need to know.
There are games that barely give you 48 words in their patch notes. The final patch notes for Baldur's Gate 3 contain 48 pages.
This is a sprawling document of balance changes, quality-of-life tweaks, and major new features. According to PC Gamer, the patch weighs in at a staggering 19,000 to 20,000 words—more than most novellas. For fans of the game, it's an exciting update. But it also reads like a farewell letter.
There will be no new DLC, no sequel, no slow drip of seasonal expansions. After April 15, the studio is done—officially stepping away from both this game and the Dungeons & Dragons universe altogether. The studio says it's moving on to new, unrelated projects, but for millions of players, the timing stings.
For a title this beloved, the idea of cutting off future development feels like the end of a dynasty—one that has had a long run—but still the end of something dope. The CRPG genre, once thought to be a niche market, had a second life thanks to Larian's work. And now that momentum will need to be carried on by another title or this massive patch.
What's the highlight of the new patch? A brand-new subclass for each of the game's 12 classes. These additions immediately expand build options and replayability, giving even seasoned players a reason to re-roll. If you loved your Bard, imagine trying out a completely new subclass that redefines how it interacts with the party.
Also included is long-awaited cross-platform play, allowing players on PC, Mac, and console to finally join the same party. That feature had been requested for years—and it's finally arriving. Unfortunately, it comes as the door is being slammed shut on any future upgrades.
There's also the introduction of photo mode, which lets players capture cinematic moments from their journey across Faerûn. It's a great tool. I love what I like to call video game photography. I have an embarrassingly long list of in-game snapshots, but I only bother when a game is truly beautiful visually.
Like many of the patch's features, it feels like something that might have hit harder a year ago when active development was still in motion.
Of course, the patch includes the usual bug fixes and performance polish. One of the more oddly specific tweaks involves Shadowheart's hair dye finally sticking. It's a small fix, but it highlights how deeply fans have engaged with every detail in the game—down to hairstyles and character design.
This one definitely feels like a parting gift from Swen Vincke, the genius behind the title.
Other updates include UI enhancements, enemy behavior adjustments, and tweaks to questline bugs that players have been reporting recently.
These aren't just cosmetic—they're the kinds of behind-the-scenes changes that help make an already stellar game feel even smoother. That stellar feeling is going to make you smile and frown when you realize there won't be any more chapters written.
I swear, this feels similar to watching the final episode of one of your favorite sitcoms. It's like they finally tie up all these loose ends, but no matter how tightly the story is sealed, there's still this sting because it's all ending.
With Larian exiting the scene, the modding community is being handed the keys to Baldur's Gate 3's future. Larian will be releasing modding tools to empower players to build their own campaigns, characters, and systems—but that support is limited to what's already in the game.
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I absolutely love when devs openly give modders tools to build on their game. In reality, it's easier when you're not dealing with a major company that owns the IP, but in any case, this is another silver lining of the end of the official support for the game.
Modding communities have become so advanced that they can often do what the original dev could not because of licensing issues or creative disagreements.
This approach works well for some communities, and it could be money for Baldur's Gate 3. Love it or hate it, we're about to find out.