Hasbro has already earned over £71million in royalties from Baldur’s Gate 3.
Released in August last year, Baldur’s Gate 3 became one of the biggest, most successful games of 2023. It was one of NME’s Games Of 2023 and picked up six awards at The Game Awards, including Game Of The Year.
To make the game though, Larian Studios licensed property from Wizard Of The Coast’s iconic role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. Because of this, parent company Hasbro has already received over £71million in royalties [via Bloomberg].
And they’re expecting the money to keep on coming. “As you turn the corner into 2024, in the front half of the year, you’re still going to have the tail from Baldur’s Gate 3,” Hasbro Chief Executive Officer Chris Cocks said on a call with analysts, before predicting that sales will continue throughout 2024.
It’s also been confirmed that Baldur’s Gate 3 will never be available for free via Xbox Game Pass. “We made a big game, so I think there’s a fair price to be paid for that, and I think that that is okay,” said Larian CEO Swen Vinke. “We don’t charge you any micro-transactions on top of it, so you get what you pay for. Upfront it’s a big meaty game. So I think that should be able to exist as it is.”
The studio is already thinking about a follow-up as well. In January, Vinke took to social media to confirm he’d finished writing what might become a sequel’s opening act. “I just am genuinely excited about where this is going and wanted to share some of my excitement,” he said but added: It’ll be quite some time before we talk about this [officially].”
In other news, Microsoft Flight Simulator has abandoned Earth for the first time with a free Dune-inspired expansion.