Inti Navia 
“Baldur’s Gate 3”… the game where you can do anything from fighting goblins to chucking an annoying squirrel that bit you into oblivion. It’s unapologetically “DnD,” and that’s amazing.
Taking place in the world of “Dungeons and Dragons,” The Forgotten Realms, your character gets infected by a mind flayer tadpole, a parasite that will kill you unless you find a healer powerful enough to save you. Along your journey, you’re joined by more adventurers affected by this, and as you slowly make your way towards the city of Baldur’s Gate, together you form an inseparable bond.
…Or maybe you try to kill each other. That’s up to you. That’s the beauty of this game. Just like real “DnD,” you can do practically whatever your heart desires. It’s a refreshingly well-made and thoughtful RPG, in which YOU decide how your story plays out. Everything from the story to even the character creation menu gives you the choice to do basically whatever you want.
The lead writer, Adam Smith, put it beautifully in an interview with Game Rant. In response to the game being compared to the length of “Lord of the Rings”, Smith said, “We’re giving you a game where you can start as Frodo in the Shire. Then, you can say I’m going to end up at the Prancing Pony, and I’m going to end up meeting with my Hobbit friends on the way.”
He added, “But, when your Hobbit friends catch up, you can just kill them and then just carry on. When you meet with Gandalf, you can just say f*ck this quest. I don’t care about that. You can wear The Ring too often and go mad. You know, we let you do that.”
It was hard for me to put this game down to write this review of it. I’ll just end by saying, “Play this game!” It’s $60 on Steam, but if it’s within your price range, go and give it a try! The immersive world will immediately suck you in, even if you’re not a “DnD” fan. In fact, this game might just be the perfect intro to “Dungeons and Dragons”.
You don’t even need to know the plot of the last two “Baldur’s Gate” games, because I have never played them and I so far am able to follow the story perfectly.
I got such nostalgia from playing this game, since I got to recreate my first ever “DnD” character. It felt like I was picking up right where his story left off. So whether you’re looking to go on a stroll down memory lane, or maybe make some new ones, “Baldur’s Gate 3” is the game for you.
By Inti Navia, Freshman, Columbia College Chicago
All Platforms: @intinavia
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