BG3 Baldur's Gate 3 News Thread

[Redglyph]

That's what I find strange. If they had sold 15 or 20 millions, they'd more than gladly say so instead of "more than 10". Even more so to make a point. Unless they're amateurs, every public message is scrutinized before being released.

That means very little. When he says "a very short space of time" it actually might not mean "to the present". It could refer to literally any time period post launch i.e. 1 month, 2 months, 6 months etc.

They sold "more than" 2.5 million copies during EA, Swen said as much in an interview shortly before or after the release - I don't remember exactly when. So we only know it's gone from 2.5+ to 10+ since August, which would be relatively quick when you compare to many other games, even if it were only 10. But, as you said, the 10+ could be an old number. It would actually make more sense, especially when you consider the Xbox and PS5 consoles.

 

[Stingray]

That's what I find strange. If they had sold 15 or 20 millions, they'd more than gladly say so instead of "more than 10". Even more so to make a point. Unless they're amateurs, every public message is scrutinized before being released.

If it was an actual sales numbers announcement then sure, but this wasn't that, it was just an off-handed comment in the middle of a Twitter thread that had nothing to do with sales (you've looked at the original source, right?) He likely phrased it that way specifically because he wasn't authorized to talk about sales numbers. My interpretation was pretty much the same as bjon045's, in that this comment doesn't preclude the sales numbers being 15M or even 20M.

 

[Couchpotato]

Meh seems we the consumer never get correct data so it's hard to say.

Owner estimations​

• ~6.62 M by PlayTracker
• ~14.64 M by VG Insights
• ~15.30 M by Gamalytic
• ~30.23 M by SteamSpy

Anyway Hasbro earned $90 Million on royalties at least.

Baldur's Gate 3 Has Made $90 Million for Hasbro - IGN

Hasbro, the parent company of Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast, revealed that Baldur's Gate 3 has earned the company $90 million through a licensing deal.

www.ign.com

 

[Redglyph]

If it was an actual sales numbers announcement then sure, but this wasn't that, it was just an off-handed comment in the middle of a Twitter thread that had nothing to do with sales (you've looked at the original source, right?) He may have phrased it that way specifically because he wasn't authorized to talk about sales numbers. My interpretation was pretty much the same as bjon045's, in that this comment doesn't preclude the sales numbers being 15M or even 20M.

That's what I'm inclined to think, too. I'm only surprised they wouldn't take the opportunity. It's not as if the director of publishing wasn't aware of the actual numbers. He's answering regarding another problem, but he's using the sales as an argument, so it would have more weight if the jump was higher, wouldn't it?

Anyway, maybe it wasn't very relevant news.

 

[bjon045]

If you look at the Hasbro numbers of 90 mil and work backwards with a whole lot of guesswork and assumptions -
Assuming a $60 average price point. Ignores all the collectors editions etc but balanced by the 10% sale they had once.

Assume 5% royalty with no upfront payment = 30 million units = highly unlikely at this point
Assume 10% royalty with no upfront payment = 15 million units = possibly?
A 15% royalty is quite uncommon but there is a small possibly because of the potential value of the IP = 10 million units = unlikely based on most predictions (see Couchpotatoes examples above).

It gets tricky if you include an upfront payment like 5 or 10 million. That would lower sales by 100-200k approx. I think given WotC had done very little with the IP except for some comics, cards and a micro module I am leaning to the upfront being a smaller amount like 1-5 million if any.

My best guess sales are 15 million+ given that Hasbro data is now already aged.

 

[Vaelith]

The takeaway from Hasbro making $90 million out of BG3 is that Larian has very likely made a number with ten digits. It's rather staggering to think that a Turn-Based CRPG made amounts of money rivaling the top Hollywood blockbusters of its own time, at arguably a portion of the expenses, as Sven didn't have to pay for superstars or Superbowl half-time commercials.

When I was younger and got into this type of game, it was a niche nerdy thing that only a few weirdos like me would even understand; now I feel like we've made it. It's time to find something else to be a nerd about.

 

[Stingray]

The takeaway from Hasbro making $90 million out of BG3 is that Larian has very likely made a number with ten digits.

At $60 a copy and an avg cut of 25% (Steam would take about 20%, console sales probably more like 30%), they would need to sell just over 22M copies to make $1B of revenue. Seems unlikely? But maybe possible - if not now, at some point in the future.

 

[Vaelith]

My own copy cost ~$300, and Steamspy estimates 30 million sales. We'll know the real number at some point, but doesn't seem too unlikely.

Edit: I just looked up and there were only 25.000 Collector Edition units for sale, so that wouldn't bump up the revenue too significantly. They did all sell quickly and I read stories of people buying them from resellers for up to $2000, but it's not like Larian got any of that money.

 

[Stingray]

Pretty sure that SteamSpy estimate isn't anywhere close to reality.

 

[bjon045]

I have no doubt it will hit 30 million units though. As soon as expansions and sales enter the picture we could see BG3 become one of the highest selling cRPG's ever.

 

[Couchpotato]

Hasbro is now allowing other developer's to make games in the BG3 setting.

Dreamlight Valley Devs Making A Life-Sim RPG Set In Baldur's Gate III Universe

The new Dungeons & Dragons game from Gameloft will be released on consoles and PC

kotaku.com

 

[wolfgrimdark]

Hasbro is now allowing other developer's to make games in the BG3 setting.

Dreamlight Valley Devs Making A Life-Sim RPG Set In Baldur's Gate III Universe

The new Dungeons & Dragons game from Gameloft will be released on consoles and PC

kotaku.com

I know most here will piss on this but while not a DLV fan at all I do love the SIMS 4 - its my safe little fluff game and I have remade many chars from other games in the SIMS.

Anyhow the idea of a life SIM in an AD&D style game around the BG3 setting where you just go out and about adventuring in an open world developing characters in this setting sounds immensely appealing to me.

 

[soola]

I know most here will piss on this but while not a DLV fan at all I do love the SIMS 4 - its my safe little fluff game and I have remade many chars from other games in the SIMS.

Anyhow the idea of a life SIM in an AD&D style game around the BG3 setting where you just go out and about adventuring in an open world developing characters in this setting sounds immensely appealing to me.

A lot of people compare Project Zomboid as a sort of dark Sims. If it could be like that I’d definitely check it out. My only issue is it is really grindy but if there’s good mod support it could be a lot of fun.

 

[Vaelith]

I mean, there are games called "Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance" incase anyone has forgotten. The setting is always Faerun, the world in which Baldur's Gate is just a city of many, it's not going to change now just because Larian made a good game. If anything, they'll try to milk it as much as they can.

 

[largh]

Hasbro is now allowing other developer's to make games in the BG3 setting.

Dreamlight Valley Devs Making A Life-Sim RPG Set In Baldur's Gate III Universe

The new Dungeons & Dragons game from Gameloft will be released on consoles and PC

kotaku.com

The author seems to think that people are more familiar with "Baldur's Gate 3 universe" instead of Forgotten Realms. What does that tell about the target audience?

Regarding the game, hey why not?! It could be good.

 

[wolfgrimdark]

The author seems to think that people are more familiar with "Baldur's Gate 3 universe" instead of Forgotten Realms. What does that tell about the target audience?

Regarding the game, hey why not?! It could be good.

Yea that is a really interesting point!

 

[Morrandir]

The author seems to think that people are more familiar with "Baldur's Gate 3 universe" instead of Forgotten Realms.

In the very first paragraph it's written correctly:

Gameloft, the company behind Disney games Dreamlight Valley and Speedstorm, has announced that it is working on a Dungeons & Dragons life-sim RPG that will be set in the Forgotten Realms, the same universe in which Baldur’s Gate III (and many other D&D adventures) take place.

 

[Redglyph]

In the very first paragraph it's written correctly:

Almost correctly (takes place).

 

[JDR13]

I wonder how much fan service they're going to saddle it with. BG3 companion crossovers anyone?

 

[Couchpotato]

Baldur’s Gate 3 wins Outstanding Video Game at GLAAD Media Awards

Baldur’s Gate 3, the role-playing video game based on Dungeons & Dragons, has been crowned tOutstanding Video Game at the GLAAD Media Awards.

www.thepinknews.com