Baldur’s Gate 3 Hotfix 17 patch notes: Gale fix, save file size reduction, more

The latest Baldur’s Gate 3 update makes some small but useful improvements, such as reducing save game sizes and making it easier to keep Gale around. Here’s everything it does, plus Larian’s subsequent clarifications.

Baldur’s Gate 3 has received another Hotfix.

The latest update, Hotfix 17, makes a handful of smaller changes that should address some bugs and other issues players have been encountering. Following the update, Larian amended the patch notes “to make sure that we’re remaining transparent.”

Here’s everything that Baldur’s Gate 3 Hotfix 17 does, updated to reflect Larian’s latest clarifications.

What’s changed in the Baldur’s Gate 3 Hotfix 17 Patch Notes

Larian Studios

The biggest change in Hotfix 17 has to do with the companion Gale.

Following the update, it’ll be easier for players to keep him around, as he will no longer permanently leave if you don’t offer him magic items to consume. The issue itself arose following Hotfix 16, which was meant to prevent players from getting trapped in certain areas thanks to quest items being left in the Camp chest or with a companion who was in Camp.

However, that patch seems to have caused additional issues, causing items that could be given to Gale to be unavailable. This created a situation by which players could offer a magic item to Gale only to not have one to provide, causing him to get mad and leave the party for good.

As Larian joked in the original patch notes, “We’ve sat him down and explained that if someone doesn’t offer him a shoe to eat every time, that doesn’t mean they never will.”

The exception to this is if the player makes it abundantly clear that they’ll never feed him magic items. At that point, Gale will leave, presumably to find some shoes or a ring to munch on.

Beyond that, there are a couple of code fixes that should reduce the size of game files via compression and removing summons that have disappeared. These should be helpful for those who frequently create save files or keep making new characters.

Finally, Larian explains that it is working to ensure later updates will release on Mac at the same time as other platforms, saying “Mac players can expect to receive both Hotfix 16 & 17, together in an update which we’ll be able to talk more about soon.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 Hotfix 17 patch notes

Baldur’s Gate 3

Larian Studios’ patch notes can be found here.

Performance and Code

• Black and colourful visual artefacts sometimes appearing for 1 frame on PS5 when switching scenes or opening and closing UI windows.
• [Fix Submitted] Error 544
  • We have increased the compression of savegames, which should fix several issues caused by large savegame files, including some instances of the Error 544 message. We have also reduced the size of save files by removing summons that don’t exist in the game anymore.
• Reduced the size of save files by removing summons that don’t exist in the game anymore.
• Guarded against crashes caused when certain character resources (Actions, Bonus Actions, Superiority Dice, etc.) were added and later removed by a mod or cheat engine.

Gameplay and Combat

• In Honour Mode, the aura of Cazador’s Potent Mist Form now properly dissipates after he’s no longer in Mist Form. Sorry!
• Fixed the camera sometimes zooming in while jumping or casting projectile spells.
• Fixed the ability to walk through open doors when you click beyond them from far away.
• Fixed Thieves’ Tools in the camp chest or inventory of a companion who is waiting at camp not being accessible when lockpicking.

UI

• Safeguard Shield’s Saving Throw modifier is now correctly reflected on the Character Sheet.

Flow and Scripting

• [Fixed] Gale will no longer permanently leave the party if you don’t offer him any magic items while talking to him – unless you’re abundantly clear that you don’t plan on ever doing so.
  • This is a temporary bug fix that aims to avoid Gale immediately leaving the party when players are unable to hand over an item. In Hotfix #16, we began the process of updating a player’s ability to access certain quest-related items, even if they were in the camp chest, or in the inventory of a companion waiting at camp.
  • However, the UI through which items can be donated to Gale has not yet been updated, which meant that the dialogue could be triggered if the items were available elsewhere, but would not show in the UI to be donated. This risked placing players in a situation where Gale expected an item from them, and they were unable to provide one.
  • With this initial fix, closing the UI or using any line other than “I’m not giving you anything. Not now, not ever” will prevent Gale from immediately abandoning your party, until the UI logic has been updated.
  • If you’re keen to give Gale the boot, and don’t have an actual shoe to share in your inventory, selecting “I’m not giving you anything. Not now, not ever”, will still cause Gale to leave your party, permanently!
• Fixed characters getting stuck ‘in a story event’, preventing you from controlling them, after getting killed in the fight with Grym.