Highlights

  • Baldur's Gate 3 faithfully recreates the lore and setting of D&D, allowing players to recognize familiar locations and experience the entire universe of the tabletop game.
  • The game's plot differs from a TTRPG campaign as it is set in stone, limiting creative freedom compared to D&D where the story can be tailored to reflect players' choices.

Many Dungeons and Dragons fans have most likely already started their foray into Baldur's Gate 3, Larian Studio's RPG game following the success of their other titles such as Divinity: Original Sin, ready to measure up how Baldur's Gate 3 compares to WotC's TTRPG.

RELATED: Best Action RPGs To Play If You Like Baldur's Gate

There are many comparisons fans could draw, as Larian has so far recreated the feel of the tabletop game somewhat faithfully, but while there are similarities, there are also some changes hardcore fans will notice in D&D's transition into the realm of video games.

10 Similar: Lore and Setting

baldurs-gate-3-astarion-crashed-nautiloid

The first and most obvious parallel would be the lore and setting used in Baldur's Gate 3--after all, its even in the title. Baldur's Gate is actually one of the most well-known cities in the Sword Coast, WotC's most used and popular world. Players will have the opportunity to explore locations that they will recognize from D&D, the lore that is implemented into these locations, and the game as a whole.

The classes, races, rules of magic, creatures, politics...the entire universe of D&D has been faithfully recreated in Baldur's Gate 3, to help give it the feel of a tabletop game without having to organize a game with friends.

9 Different: Rigid Plot

Baldur's Gate 3 Shadowheart On The Ship

As one might expect from a role-playing game, there is a plot and story threads for players to follow. Now, while this might seem like a similarity that players could draw to D&D, this is actually where it differs from a TTRPG campaign. As it is a video game, the story is set in stone, even if there are different outcomes depending on players' choices.

With a D&D game, there is more creative freedom as DM's can tailor the story as it's in progress to better reflect the players' choices and what hooks they choose to follow or ignore. Furthermore, DMs can incorporate a player's background seamlessly into their stories, which unfortunately cannot be done with player characters in a video game. However, should players choose one of the origin characters, they can experience their personal story arc.

8 Similar: Combat

Baldur's Gate 3 Deactivating A Third Guardian Statue

No Dungeons and Dragons game would be complete without combat thrown against the players, and the same is true of most video games. Players who are familiar with the tabletop game will know that combat follows a turn-based system, in which players will take their turn one after another, including the monsters the DM controls. The order is determined by a creatures initiative score, which is calculated using the players' dexterity score.

MORE: Baldur's Gate 3 Tip Makes Playing Stealthy More Convenient

In Baldur's Gate 3, the combat system is faithfully recreated so that players are put into a turn order and combat will be turn-based, with the order determined the same as in D&D. Furthermore, surprise rounds and attacks of opportunity are also implemented, and players can have an authentic feel of true D&D combat thanks to the movement, actions, and bonus actions of their turn.

7 Different: Missing Character Classes and Races

Baldur's Gate 3 Dragonborn As A Monk In Character Creation

While Baldur's Gate 3 does allow players to choose their character's class, race, and gender a la D&D, the roster of choices while robust is not complete. Baldur's Gate 3 was released with twelve vanilla classes and 46 subclasses to choose from, giving them plenty of choice. There were also 11 races, not including subraces, so players could craft a truly unique character.

But, that is still not as much creative freedom as D&D players would be given. There are many missing classes, subclasses, races, and new lineages options that have been added in subsequent D&D books that give players even more choices, including the Artificer class. Dungeon Masters do have the option to dent certain character creation options if they feel out of place in their worlds, but those options still exist for DMs who want to give their players more options.

6 Similar: Narration

Party interacting with NPCs as narrator fills in the blank.

D&D games all rely on a DM as much if not more than players to spin the story, with the DM being the one who writes the general plot, which they will narrate, as well as reading through descriptions of places and people. This helps fill in the blanks in players' minds, even when using maps or character tokens to provide visual aid during their play.

As a video game, Baldur's Gate 3 has a huge advantage as it is largely made of visuals, allowing players to see an NPCs body language or facial expression, but still, there is a need for a narrator, which is provided. The narrator speaks up sometimes during interactions with other characters or when investigating objects, narrating what players notice beyond the obvious, if anything at all.

5 Different: Lack of Perma-Death

Baldur's Gate 3 Druid casting a spell

Character death is two words that will strike fear and dread into the hearts of any D&D player. Nothing can be more demoralizing than lovingly crafting a character, and developing bonds with the rest of the party and the world as a whole only for them to fall due to the lack of luck when rolling the dice. While death doesn't have to be final in D&D, sometimes the option of bringing the character back is impossible due to the party’s resources or the world they are in.

However, in Baldur's Gate 3 death never has to be an end. Players are handed revivify spell scrolls to use at the start of a game, characters with the spell memorized can revive party members, or they can even speak with the undead Withers for aid. Furthermore, there is a handy game mechanic players can make use of if one or more party members die, and they are low on options: reload the save. The option to 'save scum' removes any notion of character death.

4 Similar: High Fantasy Adventure

Baldur's Gate 3 Cinematic

While D&D comes in many forms and genres, high fantasy is still its bread and butter, with that type of setting still popular among most D&D parties, with plenty of the auxiliary books providing new campaign stories, creatures, or character creation options for DMs and players to utilize in a high fantasy adventure. It's even in the name: Dungeons and Dragons, bringing the image of a plucky band of heroes, ready to go spelunking and face off against dragons for gold and glory.

RELATED: Games Every Lover Of High Fantasy Should Play

In RPGs, fantasy is also a popular genre, as it is a setting that lends itself well to this form of game, and ideology that is paralleled in this D&D RPG. With dragons and other monsters, and players traveling far and wide across the world, Baldur's Gate 3 is a high fantasy game, there is no mistaking it.

3 Different: No Dungeon Master

baldur's gate 3-1

D&D could not exist without the Dungeon Master, the one person nominated or who volunteers to be the one to decide on the plot, setting, and control all the NPCs players could come up against. They are the driving force behind the game, but they also work alongside their party to tell the tale, bringing in the character backstories of the party into the plot to help them feel more engaged and as an integrated part of the world

A human DM is something notably missing from Baldur's Gate 3, despite there being the option to play as a DM in Larian's other famous RPG, Divinity: Original Sin 2. This game mode is lacking from Baldur's Gate 3, despite it being a D&D video game. Instead, players will have to make do with the narrator and AI filling in some of the roles a DM would take.

2 Similar: Co-Op with Friends

The party standing on a cliff, overlooking the world.

Cooperation is key in TTRPGs, as unless they are partaking in a battle royale the players are all on the same side, working together as they explore the world, face off monsters and save the day. They also work alongside the DM to tell a story that everyone enjoys and engages in, ensuring everyone is enjoying their time at the table.

The same could definitely be said of Baldur's Gate 3, as the player will team up with origin characters or their friends as they play through the story and world of Baldur's Gate 3, and they must cooperate with others regardless of game mode in order to save their own life.

1 Different: No Option to Romance Friends' Player Characters

Shadowheart and the PC lying side by side, smiling.

Romance is by no means a necessary core part of D&D, but that doesn't stop some hopeless romantic players from planning a romance with one of their friends' characters. Romance can add a new layer of depth to people's characters, roleplay, and also gives their characters something to lose, which is something devious DMs can take advantage of.

In Baldur's Gate 3, romance is an option, but only between a player character and an origin character. Origin characters can't romance other origin characters, and player characters can't romance other player characters, at least not yet. Until the modding community comes to players' aid, this is just another difference between Baldur's Gate 3 and D&D.

MORE: Dungeons and Dragons - Every Edition Ranked