'That's pretty cool': Larian boss Swen Vincke responds after Stranger Things co-creator credits Baldur's Gate 3 for inspiring the show's climactic battle

Stranger Things cast in a row looking concerned at camera. — (Image credit: Netflix)

A team of would-be heroes working together to take down a powerful bad guy that none of them could handle on their own is hardly a novel concept. One might think of the Super Friends, for instance, or the time Kiss battled an evil genius to save an amusement park. So it's maybe a bit, well, odd that Stranger Things co-creator Matt Duffer credits the inspiration for the show's finale to Baldur's Gate 3. But it's also pretty cool, right?

"We were thinking about D&D, and I was playing Baldur’s Gate 3 at the time, and we felt it was very important that the only way for them to defeat it was for the entire party to work together," Duffer told Variety about the final battle between Vecna, the Mind Flayer, and the gang. "Everyone had fully realized—either through self-acceptance or they've resolved all their various issues—moving into that final battle, they're absolutely primed. They're the ultimate team, and it's the party working all together to defeat this thing.

Using teams of folks with individual skills to whomp the bejeezus out of some soul-sucking unpleasantness is Gaming 101, really: With a little bit of luck and a can-do attitude, a fighter, a mage, and a cleric can solve pretty much any problem you want to throw at them. Baldur's Gate 3 is certainly the latest (and possibly greatest) example, but you could say the same about the original heroes of the Sword Coast, or the squad Khelben Blackstaff sent to Temple Darkmoon, or the gang who saved the city of Phlan in Pool of Radiance, or—well, you get the idea.

And while there is a temptation to be too cool for school about it, the truth is that those of us who are in the know about such things likely represent a relatively small portion of the overall Stranger Things audience—and for those who are not, hearing about the Baldur's Gate 3 inspiration might come as more of an interesting surprise.

That's pretty cool — (Image credit: Swen Vincke (Twitter))

The inspiration works both ways, as it turns out: After Vincke posted about the Baldur's Gate 3 inspiration, Larian head of publishing Michael Douse responded, "Damn now I really should watch Stranger Things."

TOPICS

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.