For a fortnight, an enigmatic otherworldly monolith in the Mojave Desert became the gaming world's greatest enigma. Conjecture reached a fever pitch when a prominent figure posted a photograph of the curious statue, making it clear it was a teaser for a significant game reveal. The internet raced to solve the puzzle. Could it be new content for a major series? The next chapter in a beloved series?
Simultaneously, the developers at Larian Studios found themselves happily discussing every far-fetched theory internally. They possessed the answer: it was a teaser for the new *Divinity* title. That forum was the exclusive place they could talk about it, bound by an unbreakable oath of secrecy. Their commitment to silence was so absolute that they even became swept up in the speculative frenzy.
"I had a moment where seeing people speculate that it was a sequel to *Bloodborne*," explained *Divinity's* writing director, "And I was like ‘Oh, I hope it is!’ And then I realized: ‘No, it certainly is not!’"
The statue provided a great topic of conversation, but it simultaneously provoked a pressing question: "Can you ultimately let down people if you create excitement?" This concern is one Larian Studios is about to address as their next RPG continues development. Described as the studio's "largest-scale" project to date, the RPG is going to attract a lot more attention in the wake of the massive success of their last project, the critically adored *Baldur's Gate 3*.
Returning to Roots
"I believe the biggest thing is that we aim not to disappoint fans," said Larian founder Swen Vincke, when asked about concerns over losing new fans expecting a direct sequel. "We are confident that the main draw they played *Baldur's Gate 3* was the interactive experience. That's our proven method, and it was originated in the *Divinity* series. The new game is essentially heading back to the foundation of it."
Larian pulled out the red carpet to excite *Baldur's Gate 3* fans curious about *Divinity*. The game's cinematic trailer showcased high production value, depicting a horrific scene reminiscent of certain cult films. The teaser included graphic imagery, designed in part on a writer. It was a confident reveal, showing the studio's faith in its next project.
However, this return to their own series was not initially the plan. While the studio aimed to revisit its original CRPG series eventually, they originally envisioned creating a successor to *Baldur's Gate 3* with a project more directly related to that world. The current project has been in active development for about two years following a dramatic shift in plans.
"Initially, we were working on a new game set in the world of D&D, built on the *Baldur's Gate 3* engine," said Vincke. "Our intention was to work gradually on *Divinity* subsequently. But we realized that our enthusiasm lay elsewhere. We had finished our journey with *Baldur's Gate 3*, so doing another didn't appeal. So we halted that project. That decision accelerated everything for *Divinity*, which meant we had to start from scratch."
Building a New Foundation
Returning to *Divinity* after nearly a decade was a significant challenge. The team gained immense experience developing *Baldur's Gate 3*, which Vincke calls the *Divinity* series at a more "advanced level." Now, he says that the new *Divinity* will be an even more evolved version of *Baldur's Gate 3* itself. To pull that off, Larian had to begin by overhauling the setting's lore.
"Among the first things we did was start to build a consistent universe, because the *Divinity* lore was in the past all over the place," Vincke elaborated. "It was necessary to resolidify it, a process we mastered during our work with D&D. Concurrently, we were creating a new engine, so we adapted our plans to implement it earlier. That process predictably did not go as smoothly as expected, so we're now nearing the end of a challenging technical overhaul."
Vincke clarified that *Divinity* will be a tactical RPG playable solo or in cooperative multiplayer. It is also a self-contained title, even though after the events of previous games. Veteran fans will recognize some returning characters, but experience with the older games is not necessary. The stated goal is to create a "grounded world where magical things happen because of player agency."
The Core Pillar: Player Agency
That final concept is crucial. When asked what Larian views as the most important aspect to nail in *Divinity*, Vincke offered a succinct answer: agency. Larian's goal is to craft a richer RPG featuring engaging "video game systems." This focus on deep simulation was a key ingredient of *Baldur's Gate 3*'s success, and the studio says it is expanding that philosophy more aggressively here.
"One of our mantra is 'write your own legend.' So the agency we want to grant you is the riskiest part," Vincke explained. "There will be sequences in there that will make you say, 'Really? It keeps going? But all I did was one small action!' We want players to discover these connections themselves. When we, during testing realized we could make these elements, it brought me great joy. It excited my inner player, and that's the sensation I want players to have when the game comes out."
In addition to the deepened focus on player agency, the production of *Baldur's Gate 3* has been instrumental to *Divinity*'s design. The studio explicitly highlights that it learned significant experience in narrative design and crafting cinematics from that project, which will be a major component of the new game.
A Collaborative Development Philosophy
The team also examined the challenges they encountered during the development of *Baldur's Gate 3*. Vincke observes that onboarding could be tricky in that game due to varied class rules. To make *Divinity* more user-friendly from the outset, Larian decided to "define our own mechanics so we could make it more streamlined for play."
"A prime example was opportunity attacks in *Baldur's Gate 3*," Vincke said. "Initially, we were resistant to include them. During early access, the community really, really wanted them. We worried it would slow down the gameplay. So we put them in and realized, well, it's truly better. They had a point! It was a positive moment because it clearly made the game better."
Based on this experience, Larian's player base will be instrumental to *Divinity*'s success. Vincke stated that the studio will continue using fan feedback
