Something to look forward to: Most people have spent hundreds of hours exploring the incredible world that is Baldur's Gate 3, sleeping with companions and seeing just how many people they can murder. But even if you've had your fill of the RPG, the cool extras that come with Baldur's Gate 3 Deluxe Edition, and the fact it's one of the greatest games of all time, could make it a compelling purchase when the set arrives next year.
The Baldur's Gate 3 studio has announced that the Deluxe Edition PC version will be shipping in the first quarter of 2024. The game's massive size means PS5 owners will be playing it across two discs, while Xbox Series X and S owners will have three discs to contend with. The PC version, meanwhile, has a custom installer on its DVD and comes with a Steam key for those without optical drives, which is most people these days.
The $80 Digital Deluxe Edition, now available to pre-order, also has a ton of extras. These include a Mind Flayer poster, Flaming Fist and Absolute patches, 32 stickers, a double-sided cloth map, and three CDs featuring the original game soundtrack.
As this is a physical edition, buyers also get an oversized game box that will bring a nostalgic tear to those who remember shelves filled with chonky boxes bearing the names of PC classics from the 90s and 2000s. Larian says it is created in the style of the original series' boxes, complete with golden framing, matte foil, and a foam insertion.
In addition to the physical goods, Baldur's Gate 3: Deluxe Edition includes all the items from the Digital Deluxe Edition, including:
- Divinity Item Pack
- Bard Song Pack
- Exclusive Dice Skin
- Paintings from Rivellon
- Adventurer's Pouch
- Digital OST
- Digital Artbook
- Digital Character Sheet
"This experiment is what we feel the future of physical media looks like, at least for us at Larian," said Michael Douse, director of publishing at Larian, in a statement. "We spent the last few months learning how to do it from scratch and put everything we learned from the Collector's Edition into what we hope is unbeatable value for what we're considering our standard physical version going forward. If it works out, we'll keep doing it this way."
"We understand the value of physical media, and while there are clearly increasingly significant challenges when it comes to the archiving of games, we truly believe it's worth experimenting, even if it means a f*ck-ton of discs."
The first-quarter timeframe for the Deluxe Edition of Baldur's Gate 3 means it will ship before the end of March. It's only available from the Larian store, and this isn't a Collectors' Edition so it won't permanently sell out.