It took me about a month to complete the third act of [Baldur's Gate 3]. It wasn't particularly challenging, nor was it particularly long compared to the acts before it, but it was because once I arrived in Rivington, I wanted to put the game down and do something else for a while.

Apparently I was not the only one who felt that way, because in a recent chat with Gamereactor, Larian's senior RPG designer Anna Guxens was asked about the third act of BG3, specifically how she felt it could be improved in the studio's current or future games

"Act 2 in particular has a very strong closing moment that shuts down an entire area [of the game]," Guxens said, adding that "the start of Act 3 feels like a big change in tone and a very dramatic change, especially if you spend a lot of time in the rest of the game It means that it can be."

That's right, BG3's second act ends strong with a dramatic climax and the resolution (if you play your cards right) of a threat that has been lurking ever since it swooped down from the nautilus at the start of the game. Arriving in Rivington at the end of the first third of the game, surrounded by entirely new NPCs and budding storylines, one might feel as if the gears have suddenly switched. At least that was the case for me. That's why I trudged back to "Hitman" for a mouthful of freelancer mode for a few weeks before returning to finish it off.

At least Guxens didn't hold it against me and said, "I think it's appropriate ...... I understand that this shift is a particularly difficult one to overcome," he said, adding that "the way [Larian] handles this tonal shift is something to keep in mind as we move forward so that things are less dramatic."

I liked it; I enjoyed it a lot once I immersed myself in the third act of BG3, but it definitely took some getting used to. If Larian's next production succeeds in keeping me glued to my seat for a surprisingly long time, well, perhaps it will earn PCG's next dazzlingly high review score.

And if you're wondering what that next film is, you'd better keep an eye on studio CEO Sven Vincke. He recently teased the planet with the news that he had cracked the first act of Larian's next film. Oh, Sven, you tease.