Brian Fargo, Interplay Entertainment (formerly Interplay Productions) co-founder and CRPG mastermind, foresaw the success of Baldur's Gate 3 and its predecessors… years before they came to fruition, even.
Speaking in a new interview with MrMattyPlays on YouTube, Fargo reveals that he yearned to work on a Baldur's Gate game after leaving Interplay in 2002. Just a few years prior to his departure, Interplay had acted as publisher to the original Dungeons & Dragons game, which was headed by BioWare. "When I left Interplay, the first thing I wanted to do was a Baldur's Gate." The Fallout and Wasteland mastermind says he "tried for a decade."
Fargo admits that both he and Feargus Urquhart, fellow Interplay veteran and co-founder of Obsidian Entertainment, "were both killing ourselves to get [Baldur's Gate], and after a decade plus, I just gave up." The industry lead explains why – and his reasoning was simple. He had a feeling Baldur's Gate would succeed. "I knew that it could be huge. I always used to say, 'you're sitting on something that's going to do at least $50 million worth of business.'"
The IP ended up in Larian Studios' hands as they developed the threequel, with Fargo calling the Divinity: Original Sin masterminds the "perfect choice." He continues his praise, stating, "I always knew that it would do fantastic, and the more time that passes, even the bigger it sells."
He certainly isn't wrong – two years out of early access, and Baldur's Gate 3 is still flying high. Back in 2024, the turn-based RPG already boasted over 10 million players.
There's more Baldur's Gate yet to come, too – although Larian isn't making the sequel itself, Dungeons & Dragons stans don't need to worry. Hasbro has stated that it's "talking to lots of partners" about the next game already and is working on a separate new D&D title, too. In other words, there's plenty in store for fans of the Forgotten Realms and RPG lovers alike – and it's safe to say Fargo's decades-old premonitions were on point.
