If you’ve played Baldur’s Gate 3 to completion, it’s impossible for the game to not connect with you in some way. I mean, that’s the point of art, to form connections between humanity and media. As a game played by millions of gamers across the world, it’s fair to say that Larian Studios’ RPG has connected with a lot of people.
Speaking to All Out Gaming, Astarion actor Neil Newbon explained that they’ve seen the pure number of fans who have found a deep connection with Baldur’s Gate 3. Newbon, who plays the game’s vampire party member Astarion, explained that countless fans have told them how much the character has meant to them.
Newbon said that their role is now to be “a conduit for that character and talk to them [fans] about their experiences and hear how this game has changed their lives” The actor explained that Astarion has helped many fans “through dark places”.
Specifically, Newbon explained that the character has strongly connected with trans gamers, especially when it comes to trans men. “I had loads of trans kids come up to me, I have a lot of trans men and women—a lot of men, trans men, specifically—that found something through my work, and it helped them.”
The Baldur’s Gate 3 star says that being able to help fans through the medium of their work is a “wonderful bonus that I think none of us really ever through we’d experience”. As an actor, Newbon explains they work to serve the character, not knowing what will become of them on release, but being able to connect so deeply with fans is the end goal of all art.
“When you’re an actor, you’re not playing for the audience,” he said. “You’re playing for yourself. You’re playing as a part of something bigger than you, but you’re not really thinking about the audience. You hope the audience will get it, but it’s not up to you. It’s their choice whether they like it or not.”
Newbon explains that “the community has come together” through Baldur’s Gate 3, and continue to do so even now that the game’s time in the spotlight has faded. “People have met each other. People have got married. People have transitioned. People have come out. They found their own sexuality or they found they weren’t alone. Or they found D&D or whatever the thing is, this game has meant so much to so many people.”
The actor explained that Baldur’s Gate 3 is really a “lightning in a bottle” scenario. Everything came together in the way it was supposed to. Despite its obvious quality, there’s always a possibility that a great game can simply not take off on launch. Baldur’s Gate 3 certainly took off far higher than anyone really expected.
Right now, Larian is done with BG3, although Hasbro isn’t. At the time of writing, a HBO series is in pre-production that will pick up after the events of the game. Additionally, Hasbro is attempting to find a developer for Baldur’s Gate 4, but many are turning the opportunity down due to the pressure of living up to Larian’s masterpiece.
