‘Almost nobody left’ of D&D team that helped get Baldur’s Gate 3 off the ground, says Larian CEO

polygon.com:

Swen Vincke, Baldur’s Gate 3 director and CEO of Larian Studios, recently offered his condolences to the massive group of Wizards of the Coast workers affected by Hasbro’s latest round of layoffs, drawing specific attention to the fact that nearly everyone at the company who was part of early discussions about the Dungeons & Dragons-based game is now gone.

“I also want to thank [Wizards of the Coast], and specifically the Dungeons & Dragons team, for giving us carte blanche,” Vincke said. “I’m really sorry to hear so many of you were let go. It’s a sad thing to realize that of the people who were in the original meeting room, there’s almost nobody left. I hope you all end up well.”

I also want to thank <a href=«https://twitter.com/Wizards_DnD?ref_src=» https:>@Wizards_DnD

and specifically the DnD team for giving us carte blanche. I’m really sorry to hear so many of you were let go. It’s a sad thing to realize that of the people who were in the original meeting room, there’s almost nobody left. I hope you all end…

Vincke shared his well-wishes in a lengthy Twitter thread concerning everything he’d wanted to say at The Game Awards when Baldur’s Gate 3 won Game of the Year (this comes on the heels of a larger conversation amongst critics about the overall structure of Geoff Keighley’s advertisement-heavy show). Vincke noted in his thread that the 30-second time limit on acceptance speeches was “a bit short,” while also being gracious about the award and the show.

After Larian Studios officially announced Baldur’s Gate 3 in 2019, Vincke was often accompanied by former Dungeons & Dragons creative director Mike Mearls on his whirlwind tour of media appearances. Mearls described his team’s role on Baldur’s Gate 3 as “story and