Summary
For Bethesda’s next foray into theFalloutfranchise, the studio could take several pages out of Larian’s playbook, most notably in the variety of origins a player can select from the game’s onset. The Dark Urge origin that players can choose during character selection inBaldur’s Gate 3offers a uniquely diabolical augment to its narrative, and it is exactly the type of left turn in the protagonist’s moral code that would make a natural fit inFallout5.
It would be a stretch to callFalloutfans neglected, between the commendableongoing support forFallout 76and the upcoming live-actionFalloutshow, but it has now been eight years since the release of its last mainline entry,Fallout 4, and it may be another eight before players can get their hands onFallout 5. Bethesda has a full docket with the ongoing development ofThe Elder Scrolls 6, and though Todd Howard has confirmed that work onFallout 5will follow the release of its flagship series, even optimistic projections place that release window as far out as the 2030s. That leaves plenty of time to adapt lessons learned from the relatively tepid launch ofStarfield,as well as the most successful contemporary titles in the genre.
Larian Teaches a Masterclass in Player Freedom
Baldur’s Gate 3took a formula for variety and agency honed on Larian’sDivinityseries and ramped it to new heights. Following a protracted early access, the full release took the industry by storm, garnering endless accolades and near-unanimously glowing critical reception. There are superlatives that can be pinned to almost every facet of its design, but especially in the fluidity and breadth of character creation, which set a tone for the impressive, almost imposinglevel of freedom inBaldur’s Gate 3.
The Genius of the Dark Urge
The Dark Urge flipsBaldur’s Gate 3’shero’s journey on its head, inheriting the player with a pre-amnesiac existence that was anything but good and noble. A Bhaalspawn with a sadistic penchant for violence, if a player chooses to fill the role of the Dark Urge character, they can expect their fractured memories to occasionally goad them toward acts of unspeakable evil. The player can choose to resist the urge, defying their former nature, or give in to it, sating that innate bloodlust. This dynamic not only injected a fascinating introspective struggle into the game’s story, but its implementation was robust enough to recontextualize the entire 3-act journey, at times feeling like a completely different game.
Borrowing From Peers and Going Back to the Roots for Fallout 5
Oneaspect ofFallout 4that many felt lackingwas its plot’s flexibility to chaos. Rife with unkillable NPCs whose premature absence Bethesda could not write around, and binary, illusory choices that made the franchise feel more on-rails than it ever had before, fans felt like the story was being told to them, as opposed to weaving the tapestry themselves. There were branching paths and multiple endings forFallout 4, but it felt less varied than its predecessors, and practically linear compared to the complex network of interwoven choices a player can make inBaldur’s Gate 3.
Taking Off the Rails
Adding acharacter origin akin to the Dark UrgeforFallout 5would go a long way in establishing a commitment to free-form roleplaying. Providing such a dramatic divergence right from the start would be the perfect showcase for a more malleable apocalyptic sandbox. Perhaps that is not the direction that Bethesda is headed as its trademark style evolves, but given the critique thatStarfield’s design felt at times like a relic of the past, the studio will more than likely seek out the prevailing trends in the industry for inspiration, and few games are trending as positively asBaldur’s Gate 3.
