Summary
Baldur’s Gate 3has plenty of characters that have become extremely popular with the community over the past year. Each playable character has legions of fans that would fight to the death for them, but it’s always interesting to find out what the voice actors for these characters thought of them before they were shared with the public.
Shadowheart and Lae’zel are two of Baldur’s Gate 3’s more eccentric personalities, played by Jennifer English and Devora Wilde respectively, and the two recentlysat down with IGNto discuss their time working with Larian and the reaction to their characters now that Baldur’s Gate 3 is a year old (yes, time really is meaningless).
English is up first in the interview, and drops the bombshell that she originally didn’t like Shadowheart all that much. However, English says thatthe community’s reaction to Shadowhearthas made her much fonder of the character, and that the “stuff that [players] like in Shadowheart is kind of the stuff I like about myself.” It must be quite affirming to have so many people love aspects of your own personality.
Baldur’s Gate 3 Actor Devora Wilde Was Surprised Lae’zel Was “So Polarizing”
Meanwhile, Wilde had a much different reaction when players first encountered Lae’zel. She’s the first character you meet after stumbling out of your pod, and quite hostile towards you too, but Wilde was still surprised that the character was “so polarizing” to begin with. She also explains that she still gets messages about people giving Lae’zel a chance in subsequent playthroughs and falling in love with the character.
“I was getting a lot of delayed responses, even now, where people are like, ‘Oh, you know what? On my third playthrough, I gave her a chance and now I love her.”
Given how aggressive Lae’zel can seem initially, it’s not too surprising that players took longer to attach themselves to her than a character like Shadowheart, and the character even managed to spark debates closer to release abouthow female characters are treated differently to male characters. We wouldn’t change her for the world though, and it’s nice to see that the community loves both of them just as much as their voice actors.
Baldur’s Gate 3
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Baldur’s Gate 3 is the long-awaited next chapter in the Dungeons & Dragons-based series of RPGs. Developed by Divinity creator Larian Studios, it puts you in the middle of a mind flayer invasion of Faerûn, over a century after the events of its predecessor.
