Baldur’s Gate 3 director explains why Xbox version was shadow dropped

Baldur’s Gate 3 director Swen Vincke has revealed why the Xbox Series X/S port was released without a formal launch date announcement.

Xbox fans have been waiting all year for a port of Baldur’s Gate 3, especially as the PC and PS5 versions racked up critical acclaim and multiple industry awards. Fortunately, Larian Studios promised that the Xbox port would be announced at The Game Awards 2023.

Those who watched as Baldur’s Gate 3 cleaned up at The Game Awards were left confused, as no Xbox Series X/S port announcements were made. It wasn’t until the show ended that Larian revealed that the Xbox Series X/S version was available to download.

Considering the show was filled with reveals, including commercials for Baldur’s Gate 3, it’s curious why more of an effort wasn’t made to announce the Xbox Series X/S. It turns out the reason is mundane and understandable.

Larian Studios

Baldur’s Gate 3 director forgot to announce the Xbox Series X/S port release date

Swen Vincke has explained on his Twitter/X account that he was meant to announce the release date for the Xbox Series X/S port of Baldur’s Gate 3, but he forgot. This is understandable, considering the excitement of the occasion and there being no guarantees of winning an award.

I had one job and that was to announce this if we won an award – sorry all but happy it’s out there! https://t.co/61hhIc1I2Y

— Swen Vincke @where? (@LarAtLarian) December 8, 2023

The Game Awards 2023 has come under fire for not giving award recipients a lot of time to give their speeches and quickly running through some major categories in a quick-fire series of announcements. However, this may have been prompted by a certain incredibly long speech from last year’s event.

Vincke went up on stage when Baldur’s Gate 3 won Game of the Year, but he used his time to thank everyone involved with the production and the fans for supporting the game, which was more important than a release date.

It was odd that Larian promised to announce the Xbox Series X/S release date during The Game Awards, only for it to be planned as a mention that never happened. It would have made sense to include it in the Baldur’s Gate 3 accolades trailer that ran during the show, but it wasn’t meant to be.

The Xbox Series X/S owners of the world can finally play one of the best games of 2023, just as it finished winning awards for the year. Luckily, they’re getting a superior version of the game than the PC/PS5 launch ports, thanks to all of the updates, so they can’t be too mad about the late shadow drop.