Baldur's Gate 3 debuted this year, and if you had been following its development, you knew it was shaping up to be a high-quality RPG. That said, nobody expected it to become a massive success that broke records and became a serious Game of the Year contender. Nevertheless, it's still intriguing to learn that it could have arrived on Xbox Game Pass but didn't because Microsoft perceived it as a second-run RPG.
As you've probably heard by now, several documents recently leaked that Microsoft provided to the court for its case against the FTC. In one of these documents, a list of games the company considered for inclusion on Xbox Game Pass was shared, along with the estimated amounts they believed they would have to pay to offer them on their service.
The list includes games like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and Dragon Ball: The Breakers, each classified with different levels of excitement. For example, Respawn Entertainment's game is classified as having a high excitement factor, while Dragon Ball: The Breakers has a low one.
Towards the end of the list, Baldur's Gate 3 appears, a game for which Microsoft was willing to pay $5 million to offer it on Xbox Game Pass. However, it seems that it was far from being a top priority, as it was labeled as a "second-runRPG for Stadia and PC."
While these statements may seem off-base, it's challenging to blame Microsoft for this perspective. After all, although Larian Studios was expected to deliver a quality game with Baldur's Gate 3, few could have predicted it would become one of the highest-profile releases of the year.
Baldur's Gate 3 has been one of the biggest hits of 2023
As previously mentioned, Baldur's Gate 3 showed promise during its Early Access phase. However, it wasn't until its official release that it became a massive launch that surprised both fans and critics.
Larian Studios' game reached a peak of 875,343 concurrent users on Steam, making it one of the platform's most successful games. Additionally, it received critical acclaim, and players fell in love with its RPG experience. Consequently, it didn't take long for it to be considered one of the best games of the year and perhaps even in gaming history.
What are your thoughts on this news? Would you have liked to see Baldur's Gate 3 on Xbox Game Pass? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Baldur's Gate 3 is already available for PC and PlayStation 5.
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