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It is no secret that the video game industry is in a tight spot right now. Sure, we’re (usually) getting better and better games each year, and the developers are communicating with the fans, via all the different social media. That way they can truly know what the fans want. But, as is always the case, it is the minority that is the loudest. In the world of gaming, a minority can raise hell after not getting the game in the way they wanted. We’ve seen it happen, and unfortunately, we’re going in that direction even more. This also leads to more division and rivalry between studios, game genres, business models, and ultimately, between the developers and the players. One of the Larian Studio’s devs, the guys behind Baldur’s Gate 3, gave his thoughts on the current state and the future of gaming while speaking up against the divisions that are plaguing the industry.
“Anticipate, Don’t Ignore, or Ridicule, or Stoke.“ Michael Douse of Baldur’s Gate 3 Team Gives His Thoughts on the Current State of Gaming and Present Divisions
It is a sad fact that the world of gaming has become such a divisive place. Instead of being united by the things we love, both gamers and developers are almost intentionally causing further divisions. We aren’t even allowed to agree to disagree, everything is “Us vs Them”, and every new game is a battleground of opinions. The notions of race, gender, sexuality, and representation have seeped into the world of gaming in the worst way possible, only serving to cause a further divide in lieu of promoting healthy representation.
This makes the future of gaming uncertain, as every new game is under heavy scrutiny, by both critics and us, the players. It’s like people are actively looking for reasons to badmouth something, and believing that trashing a new product will make the world a better place. However, the problem is that each and every one of us has a unique version of a “better place”.
On this topic, Michael Douse, the Head of Publishing at Larian Studios, had quite a lot to say. He started by posting:
“2025 (and beyond) is going to be an extremely tough time to ship a game, with division spilling into everything. I have one practical piece of advice that may to some seem controversial, but it’s crucial: anticipate, don’t ignore, or ridicule, or stoke. Figure it out. Navigate the waters even if you think they’re unfair, or that the sea shouldn’t be so rough. The reality is that it is.”
He goes on to answer a couple of very important questions, posted by other users. The first one is by KolhoSouj0, who stated: “Some devs are not making games for the majority of gamers. They are chasing a non-existent modern audience. The sooner they figure it out the better chance they have surviving.” On that, Douse said:
“Creative Directors & their creative teams have a huge amount of agency, and generally what they make (to a greater or lesser degree) is what they wanted to make. They themselves aren’t in charge of finding an audience. In a sense, they work with authentic artistic optimism. Ultimately however the market itself decides if it’s what wanted, or not. These are both fine. Healthier – in fact – than a retail store deciding.”
Moving on, yamumslipper asked: “do you think the culture war BS regarding games and general [unpleasentness] that’s spilled into social media will eventually blow over?” On that question, Douse had this to say:
“No I think the increasing obsession individualism has created a world where everyone is defending their corner, believing they are right. It has increased the perception of “otherness” and everyone basically wants to find an eco-chamber to feel safe in, which I can understand (for both good and bad reasons, I’m not judging anyone). This is now the reality. In an industry where high risk = pleasing everyone, it is basically antithetical to success. I also believe in individualism (be whoever you want to be, as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else), but division has created a world of [jerks].”
Remember that Larian’s Baldur’s Gate 3 has so much success and was widely praised by basically all “subgroups”, which proves that you can make a game that pleases everyone if your focus is on making a compelling story, rather than seeing who you’re going to antagonize/suck up to. Do you agree with the above statements?