Baldur’s Gate 3 Could Spark A Huge Change To Another Great RPG Series
Pillars of Modernity.
Avowed was a surprising turn for Obsidian Entertainment. After two isometric RPGs in the Pillars of Eternity series, the developer turned to a first-person style inspired by The Elder Scrolls for a spinoff set in the world of Eora. Maybe even more surprisingly, Avowed carved out a distinct identity that offered some smart improvements on The Elder Scrolls’ formula. But Avowed isn’t technically a sequel to the Pillars games, and for that, the studio may be looking to switch up its style once again.
“I think that a third game should be an isometric 3D with an environment more like Baldur’s Gate 3; it would work,” studio design director Josh Sawyer recently told Gamepressure. “And I think that could be really awesome. It would be easier for us to make the art and be a lot more dynamic. I've said this before, so hopefully nobody will get mad.”
The next Pillars of Eternity game could look very different.
It might seem odd that anyone would get mad at another game like the near universally acclaimed Baldur’s Gate 3, but the differences between it and Pillars are notable. Unlike the turn-based Baldur’s Gate 3, Pillars of Eternity’s combat is closer to the real-time battles of the original Baldur’s Gate games. And rather than 3D environments, Pillars features static but gorgeously illustrated backgrounds. There may be reasonable concern that Pillars could lose the old-school spirit that makes it great if it shifts to 3D.
According to Sawyer, though, the static environments of Pillars of Eternity and its sequel, Deadfire, come with their own drawbacks that could make changing beneficial.
The gorgeous backgrounds of Pillars of Eternity do present some limitations.
“Because it is isometric, there's no sense of height, and the environment can't be that dynamic,” Sawyer said. “When you compare it to something like BG3, you realise it's such a huge part of the appeal. I think, at some point, I would like to see a game that used all those Deadfire mechanics, plus more environmental mechanics, elevation hazards, and dynamic terrain stuff.”
The Pillars of Eternity games are two of the best RPGs of the last decade, and some of their appeal comes from the distinct feeling of moving through these gorgeous environments. But it’s hard to deny that Baldur’s Gate 3, much like Larian’s Divinity: Original Sin games, feels much more dynamic. The level of environmental interaction they offer, from chucking barrels at enemies as improvised missiles to controlling the spread of fire, just isn’t possible in Pillars of Eternity, and it would be a thrill to see Obsidian play with similar concepts.
The dynamic environments of Baldur’s Gate 3 could inspire a future Obsidian game.
To be clear, Sawyer isn’t promising that this will be Obsidian’s path for a hypothetical Pillars of Eternity 3, or that such a game will even exist. Despite having a devoted fan base, the hardcore nature of the Pillars games has limited their sales. That’s led to uncertainty over whether the studio would attempt a new mainline entry, and Sawyer himself has gone back and forth on whether doing so would be worthwhile. Just last year, he said of Avowed, “Maybe that’s where the Pillars universe kind of goes in the future,” to RPG Site, and added that he’s more interested in working with entirely original ideas than continuing an existing series.
So don’t get your hopes up that Pillars of Eternity 3 will arrive any time soon, but if Obsidian does take another swing at the series, it could look a lot different from what’s come before it. The success of Baldur’s Gate 3 is likely to have a lasting effect on the RPG space for some time to come, and seeing a studio as capable as Obsidian take inspiration from Larian’s hit is one of the most exciting outcomes I could hope for.
