Larian planned for a simultaneous release, but the Xbox Series S has thrown a curveball at the studio.
Baldur's Gate 3 developer Larian is still figuring out how to bring the title to Xbox Series X | S, and has told IGN that it might need to make some "compromises" to get the project over the line.
Speaking to IGN about the current state of development, Larian boss Swen Vincke explained the scale of the game–"you're very free in what you do, more free than people expect"–has resulted in the need for a lot of optimization.
On Xbox platforms specifically, the team is having to ensure the title delivers the same experience (at least, where features are concerned) across both the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
The Xbox Series S, however, lacks the same firepower as its mightier sibling, and that's causing Larian some issues–especially where the title's split-screen mode is concerned.
"On certain platforms we're just faster than on other platforms. It just takes us time. That's the reality of development," said Vincke. "It's not that we planned this. Our plan was that we wanted to have a simultaneous release. But we've been on this game for a long time. It's a really big game.
"The amount of things you can do in it is insane. I think people will be surprised when they see everything. There's constraints we have to overcome, so we just work on them. Some take more time."
Larian has also found Series S development troublesome because the scope of the title has continued to expand throughout production, but Vincke says the team is finally in a position where they can "see what they're up against."
Microsoft has attempted to assist Larian where it can, with engineers from the Xbox Advanced Technology Group (ATG) parachuting in to help the studio kick on with the Series S version of the game.
"We had support from the ATG group. They've been doing great. They've been helping a lot. Everybody wants this out on Xbox. It's not that we don't want it out on Xbox. It's just that, our problem–and this is us, Larian–is that we just made a very big game. And it's a very complicated game," continued Vincke.
Although Vincke is grateful for the help, he also doesn't believe Larian should withhold a finished version of the title from players just so it can deliver a simultaneous multi-platform release.
"If we were to do ultimate parity on all the platforms, we would have to wait I don't know how much time before we would be ready," he continued. "That's why it's important we release it now, we release it when it's ready on PS5, and we release it when it's ready on Xbox."
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