Why Does Baldur’s Gate 3 have a Reputation System?

While playing Baldur’s Gate 3, you’ve probably seen notifications like “X approved this” or “Y didn’t like this” countless times. At first glance, it seems like a small detail, but it’s actually one of the most critical systems shaping the relationship the game establishes with its characters. Larian’s choice of this system is a more conscious design decision than you might think.

How Does the Baldur’s Gate 3 Reputation System Work?

For Baldur’s Gate 3, developer Larian Studios wanted to make the companion system feel more “alive.” As writer Kevin VanOrd said, it wouldn’t make sense for every character to react the same way to your decisions. That’s where the reputation system comes in.

The logic is actually simple: As a character’s trust in you increases, they become more compliant with your decisions. So, if you maintain a good relationship, they can stand by you without questioning during difficult times. But if your relationship isn’t good, things change, and persuasion processes, often involving rolling the dice, come into play. This creates a structure quite consistent with the game’s Dungeons & Dragons roots.

Another important point is the character recognition process. Each “approved/disapproved” notification actually gives you a small clue. Who reacts to what, how each character thinks… You gradually figure these things out. So the system isn’t just a scoring system, but also functions as a tool that conveys character development to the player.

Of course, there’s also the development side of things. It’s practically impossible for every character to give lengthy, specific reactions to every situation. Larian uses this system to both balance the workload and successfully convey the characters’ feelings clearly to the player. In short, the reputation system isn’t just a “mechanic”; it’s one of the cornerstones that creates that living party feel in Baldur’s Gate 3.

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