Baldur’s Gate 3 isn’t exactly a small game. A single playthrough has over 100 hours with side quests, and a second run opens pathways you otherwise locked. Then there are mods. So long as creators support the game, there’s no telling how much more content you’ll get to enjoy. Fortunately, Larian Studios is working hard to make mods cross-platform.
Michael Douse, Larian’s director of publishing, let the news slip on X, describing the plan as “robust.” We don’t yet know when cross-platform mods will arrive, but it should land at some point this year.
The developers already have a working system, but Douse says it’ll need some testing and tweaking before release. No doubt there are some PlayStation and Xbox-shaped hoops to jump through.
On the official Baldur’s Gate 3 Discord server, Senior community strategist WombatMedic shared that the next big patch will introduce the first stages of modding support to build on. From there, Larian won’t go at it alone. The studio will reach out to modders in order to get its implementation right. After all, it doesn’t want to break mods along the way.
“We want to continue making sure you’re getting the best possible experience, which is why we frequently patch the game, although this does inevitably mean that each new patch or hotfix has the potential to become incompatible with your favourite mods,” says WombatMedic. “We know this sucks, we know you want to play with mods, and we want to make this right.”
It’s no surprise, considering the amount of mechanics intertwining here. Character customisation, spells, all the branching pathways, user interface, and certain assets don’t make it easy.
Usually, it’s just PC gamers who get to enjoy mods. After all, creators make them using Windows. Bethesda made a dent in this routine on Xbox One and PlayStation 4, introducing console mods to Skyrim and Fallout 4. The trend hasn’t really carried through to many other games since.
I’m a big fan of parity where possible, but don’t expect all mods to make the cut. Even as Larian releases official support, it’ll be down to modders to make sure everything’s initially available and then updated with each patch. As we saw with both of Bethesda’s games, it’s likely only a fraction will make the leap to console. Still, I’m cautiously optimistic.
