If you ache to explore the world of the Sword Coast with your friends, good news: crossplay is finally coming to Baldur’s Gate 3 after a wait that felt as long as elven lifespans. Larian announced today that Patch 8 is entering stress testing. The patch still needs some time to cook, but Larian has major expectations for what this update will bring. After all, according to the devs, this is the last official patch.
Patch 8 is a big one. It adds not only crossplay, but also a whopping 12 new subclasses, a photo mode, and restores split-screen play to the Xbox Series S. There are also numerous small bug fixes and balance adjustments.
The new subclasses aren’t just afterthoughts; they’re accompanied by new animations, abilities, and unique dialogue lines for each. For example, if you play an Oathbreaker Paladin — a class that carries a certain level of notoriety in the world of Dungeons and Dragons — then some NPCs might react negatively towards you. These classes include:
- Bard — College of Glamour
- Barbarian — Path of Giants
- Cleric — Death Domain
- Druid — Circle of Stars
- Paladin — Oath of the Crown
- Fighter — Arcane Archer
- Monk — Drunken Master
- Ranger — Swarmkeeper
- Rogue — Swashbuckler
- Sorcerer — Shadow Magic
- Warlock — Hex Blade
- Wizard — Bladesinging
The Photo Mode is nothing to scoff at, either. It essentially lets you set up any shot you want, along with customization and editing tools. You can enable or disable characters, remove enemies from the shot, and even add stickers like objects, blood splatter, and more to the scene.
If you’ve signed up to participate in the stress test, Larian says to check your email. PlayStation 5 and PC gamers should find the requisite code there, while Xbox players can access it through the Xbox Insider Hub. The team reports several known bugs (some more serious than others), and asks players to report anything they run across.
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It’s even possible to crossplay with friends who are running modded versions of the game, even if you’re on console. The host has to have less than 100 mods installed, and those mods must be compatible with both console and Mac. Otherwise, you won’t be able to join the adventure due to mismatched mods.
The stress test is still available to join, although signing up for an invite doesn’t guarantee access.
Larian Studios hasn’t given a specific release window for when the patch will roll out to everyone else, but the studio does intend for this to be the final major patch. It aims to move on to new projects away from the Dungeons and Dragons universe, but you can expect to see it sometime in 2025.
