In a new interview with IGN, Larian Studios boss Swen Vincke responded to questions about Baldur’s Gate 3 being on Xbox Game Pass, explaining why the best RPG of 2023 won’t be on Microsoft’s subscription service anytime soon.
I would not think there is much incentive to do so when the game is good and selling well.
Games reach Game Pass via deals similar to those offered by Epic. Microsoft pay the publisher a fixed amount, so if it is believed that it beats the proceeds from the projected sales for the given period, there’s no reason not to agree to it. In other words, it’s all about how much they would offer and how long it would have been since the game release.
I agree, I was of the mindset that I wasn’t going to buy it at launch because too many games are broken at launch, but then I the reviews were all great, and I learned that there would be no microtranactions and I realized that this is the type of game I want to reward by buying early and paying full price. I’ve not been disappointed.
Okay? I already said I am going to buy it but it would be great if it was on Game Pass which I already pay for, which apparently is downvote worthy that I am a bit poor at the moment.
Game pass needs games with lots of dlc and season pass bullshit for it to make sense for non Microsoft games. If you actually make a good game, it’s way more profitable to ignore game pass.
It’s also profitable for long-duration early access games where most of your users and potential purchasers already have already bought it. Good cash injection right at the end of development from an audience that probably wasn’t going to buy it anyway.
Game pass might be a good deal, and I don’t fault anyone for wanting to maximize gaming on a budget, but the transition to subscription based gaming is going to be very bad for studios in the long term.
That’s unfortunate. I want to try this game, but I feel like I’m either going to love it, or hate it, and don’t want to waste my money if it’s the latter.
Any place I can try a demo?
