Summary
When I first started playingBaldur’s Gate 3, I got my entire party killed by a bunch of missile-shooting statues, lost an hour of progress,and resolved to never let that happen to me again. It was a difficult pill to swallow, so after that, I became an unapologetic save scummer.
I wouldn’t enter a room without saving, but that eventually turned into refusing to talk to people without saving. I said at the end of my article that I had no intention of using my saves to cheat my way into better rolls, but dear reader, it turns out I have a much weaker moral fiber than I thought I did, because I almost immediately started cheating my way into better rolls. I was save scumming in every sense of the word, ensuring I passed every check even if it meant repeating the same conversation fifteen times.
I meant what I said at the time: I really do think that the most authentic, fun way to play would be without save scumming. But I also want to know what happens if I pass all the checks that seem even remotely important, and I want to know on my first playthrough. I don’t want tohaveto replay the game to get the outcome I want. If that means fudging my rolls and creating a semi-permanent time loop in which I smash F8 over and over, forcing my characters to do the same thing until they get a different result, then so be it.
For my second playthrough though, I’m committed to playing the game the way Bhaal intended. No save scumming, no cheating my way out of a bad roll, just good old Dungeons & Dragons. I don’t trust myself not to go back to my scummy old ways, though, and that’s where Larian’s latest patch comes in.Baldur’s Gate 3’s new Honour Mode has been making headlines for being brutally difficult. It’s the game’s hardest difficulty, Tactician, but worse, adding over 30 new tweaks to every boss fight, and allowing bosses to perform new actions to catch players off guard. If you could save scum, maybe you’d get through it just fine, but Honour Mode also forces you to use only a single save file, and if your entire party dies, your run is over.
I’m playing on Explorer. I do not have time to die over and over in battles, rending my clothes and tearing my hair out in distress, I have a job and a social life to maintain. You aren’t going to catch me eventryingHonour Mode, because I know I’m not getting far before dying. What I’m more interested is Custom Mode, which lets you personalise the game to your specific preferences. you may tweak enemy aggression and loadouts, your characters’ power, remove Death Saving Throws, and even make Short Rests fully heal your party. Most importantly, you could do what I’ll do and leave every setting as is except for one: single save. Turning this option on will make it impossible to save scum, making every decision and roll completely permanent. A true Dungeons & Dragons experience,assuming you play with a brutal Dungeon Master like mine who never lets me get away with anything.
And from my next playthrough, that’s how I will be playing. I’m ready to actually face the consequences of my actions, no matter how stupid and ill-advised they may be, and having the single save option on means I won’t be able to go back on my word and start quick-loading again. Larian has given me a way to hold myself accountable, and for that I’m grateful. Who needs self-discipline when you have built-in gameplay modes?
