Baldur's Gate 3 "rekindled many players' love for CRPGs," which Warhammer 40k Rogue Trader dev says is a blessing

It's easy to imagine rival developers as, well, rivals. Crossing their fingers for game-breaking bugs, checking Metacritic scores and slapping their knees in comic anger when another CRPG breaks the 90 barrier. The reality is very different. Many developers at different studios are friends and former colleagues, or they just want to see their corner of the games industry thrive. That's certainly the case with Owlcat Games, the team behind Warhammer 40k Rogue Trader. Owlcat brand manager Anton Emelyanov has recently gone on the record to say he admires Baldur's Gate 3 and the team at Larian, going as far as to say it has proved to the team that there's an audience for narrative-driven CRPGs.

While none of Owlcat's games appear on our list of the best RPGs (Larian has two entries, for Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin 2), I've got a soft spot for its efforts in the genre. From its classic Pathfinder games, to the Warhammer and Expanse titles of its present and future, I'm glad that the developer has carved out a successful niche in the CRPG genre.

Emelyanov was recently interviewed by FRVR, and tells the website that Baldur's Gate 3's success has buoyed Owlcat and given it confidence that there's a big audience for games like Rogue Trader.

"Major successes in the genre reaffirm that there is a large audience for deep, story-driven CRPGs," he says in the interview. "They don't change our direction, but they strengthen our confidence that investing in complex systems and narrative depth is worthwhile. It's motivating to see the genre thrive. We're also very glad that BG3 and our games have rekindled many players' love for CRPGs and introduced the genre to entirely new audiences."

The DnD game's success has caused Owlcat to double down on what it considers to be the core pillars of the genre: in Emelyanov's words, "choice and consequence, strong companions, and writing." He also notes that deep mechanics which can offer numerous different builds will be a core focus for Owlcat going forward.

As for the future of CRPGs, Larian has confirmed it's working on something away from Baldur's Gate for its next game, and Owlcat has Warhammer 40k: Dark Heresy and The Expanse: Osiris Reborn in the works. "The genre is moving toward deeper reactivity, stronger systemic storytelling, and more accessible onboarding without sacrificing complexity," Emelyanov says.

"We expect to see better integration of player choice into moment-to-moment gameplay rather than isolated narrative beats. At Owlcat, we aim to continue improving reactivity, companion depth, and gameplay systems that meaningfully respond to player decisions and increase immersion."

If both studios can continue to deliver all this, I for one will be very happy. All I need now is '2 Planescape, 2 Torment,' and I'll have enough roleplaying goodness to last me until the day I die.