Larian Studios has made a breakthrough that could reshape the future of role-playing games. The Belgian game developer, which created the critically acclaimed Baldur's Gate 3, has upgraded its proprietary engine. Technical director Bert van Semmertier confirmed the news in an interview with Edge Magazine. This update eliminates significant restrictions that had previously limited how large game worlds could be.
In Baldur's Gate 3, a longstanding limitation forced multiplayer players to move between acts together. This constraint had shaped how the studio built its world and structured the narrative. Van Semmertier acknowledged that these bottlenecks also slowed the development of community-made modifications. However, the upgraded Divinity Engine has successfully addressed these architectural challenges.
The studio deliberately avoids chasing cutting-edge graphical trends like advanced ray-tracing. Instead, Larian prioritizes keeping its projects manageable for the team's current size. Van Semmertier emphasized that owning a proprietary engine gives them remarkable creative freedom. Had they relied on a third-party engine, they might not have achieved such tailored solutions.
Larian's next title, simply called Divinity, has been described as unprecedented in scope. CEO Swen Vincke has called it the culmination of every lesson the studio has learned. Baldur's Gate 3 sold over twenty million copies and won numerous awards worldwide. If Divinity fulfills its ambitious promise, it could set a new benchmark for the entire genre.