Baldur’s Gate 3 won’t be on PS Plus or Xbox Game Pass any time soon
If you’re holding out for Larian Studios’ RPG magnum opus to hit your favourite subscription service soon, it’d be wise not to hold your breath for too long.
Ownership – specifically of games – has been called into question this week, as companies like Ubisoft begin to cement its stance that video game subscription services like PS Plus, Xbox Game Pass, and Ubisoft Plus are the future, as per a relatively spicy interview with The Gamer. Other developers completely disagree, however, and one of them just so happens to be the studio behind 2023’s GOTY winner, Baldur’s Gate 3.
Studio co-founder and Baldur’s Gate 3 creative director Swen Vincke made his stance on the subscription service model clear in a Twitter thread, saying, “subscription models will always end up being cost/benefit analysis exercises intended to maximize profit”. He went on to clarify his opinion further, stating “it’s going to be a lot harder to get good content if subscription becomes the dominant model”.
News that Baldur’s Gate 3 won’t be coming to a subscriptions service anytime soon comes at a time when Xbox, in particular, is a platform that couldn’t be pushing it harder. Every first-party exclusive release comes to the Xbox Series X|S on day one, and each month Xbox Game Pass plays host to day one releases. Tomorrow, for instance, Palworld will arrive as part of the Xbox Game Pass January 2024 lineup on its first day of release.
Such a deal won’t be on the cards for Baldur’s Gate 3 in the near future, then, as Vincke capped off his thoughts by saying that “direct from developer to players” – AKA without using a subscription service as the middle man – “is the way”. As such, players shouldn’t expect this to change any time soon.
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Through the gate
If ever there was a single game that could defy the odds, especially as far as the realm of video game ownership is concerned, it’s Baldur’s Gate 3. Larian Studios is a fully independent developer who captured the imagination of millions of players last year, meaning it doesn’t have to sway to the whims of PlayStation, Xbox or anyone else when it comes to how it chooses to sell the game. And let's not forget, Baldur’s Gate 3 has been subject to a holiday price cut and been part of its own PS Plus trial, meaning Larian isn’t against reducing some barriers to entry.
This isn’t even the first time Vincke has been on record dismissing the idea of a subscription service, more specifically Xbox Game Pass. “It’s not going to be on Game Pass”, he definitively stated back in December, emphasising his belief that Baldur’s Gate 3 is worth paying for. With Vincke also recently confirming Larian’s next game is well underway, it’d be wise to assume this won’t be coming to subscription services in the future either.
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