BG3 Owes Everything to One Underrated 2009 BioWare RPG
Baldur’s Gate 3’s beloved character Astarion bears striking similarities to Zevran from BioWare’s 2009 RPG Dragon Age: Origins, suggesting significant thematic and character design influence between the two titles. Both characters share similar archetypes: sardonic elves who initially approach the player with hostility, having been hired to kill you, but gradually reveal deeper layers of personality as the relationship develops. The charm and wit both characters employ serve as both flirtation and armor against their traumatic pasts.
The article explores how Dragon Age: Origins, despite being underrated or overlooked in broader gaming discourse, fundamentally shaped the character-driven RPG design that Baldur’s Gate 3 has become famous for. Both games prioritize companion relationships and personal storytelling as core elements of the player experience, with character interaction quality determining how much depth they reveal about themselves and their motivations.
This analysis suggests that Baldur’s Gate 3’s critical and commercial success—which has made it a defining game of recent years—owes significant debt to design philosophies and character archetypes pioneered by BioWare’s 2009 title. The piece makes a case for Dragon Age: Origins’ underappreciated influence on modern RPG design, particularly in how games construct compelling companion characters with complex emotional depths and branching relationship outcomes.