In 2026, Baldur's Gate 3 remains a colossus in the role-playing game landscape, a title that swept the 2023 Game Awards and then kept growing through Larian Studios' steady patches, new cutscenes, and official mod support. Yet amid all the sprawling systems, one fan's Reddit post has aged like a fine, slightly controversial wine: a list of everything they are glad Larian left out. User twitchy-y did not ask for more mechanics. Instead, they praised the game's negative space, the design choices that never made it to the table. Like a gardener who shapes a bonsai as much by pruning as by planting, they argued that Baldur's Gate 3's greatness comes partly from the features it refuses to carry.
The first two items on the list concern weapons. Ranged weapons in Baldur's Gate 3 have infinite ammo during combat, and gear does not break after use. For twitchy-y, this is a mercy. Hunting for arrows between battles would have turned every dungeon crawl into a shopping trip, and constant weapon repair is a chore that many other RPGs impose like a tax collector who follows the hero through every gate. Larian's decision keeps the focus on tactics and story rather than inventory maintenance. The fan's post reads like a quiet toast to the absence of busywork.
Then there is crafting. Baldur's Gate 3 already asks players to manage companions, spell slots, camp supplies, and a hundred branching quests. A full crafting system, twitchy-y wrote, might have pushed the experience from rich to suffocating. The game's alchemy and item interactions are light touches, not a second job. In a medium where every sequel seems to add a workbench, Larian's restraint feels like a jazz musician knowing the power of the notes not played. The result is a game that respects the player's time, even as it devours dozens of hours.
Other omissions on the list include an out-of-combat stamina system, fetch quests, and limits on where and when players can save. Each absence protects a different pleasure. No stamina bar means exploration is not a metronome of rest stops. No fetch quests means the journal is not clogged with errands that exist only to inflate playtime. No save restrictions means players can experiment, reload, and laugh at disastrous dice rolls without being punished by design. For a game built on choice, that freedom is essential.
More controversially, twitchy-y applauded Larian for omitting fishing and cooking. Many fans in the comments disagreed, imagining a tranquil afternoon by a river or a campfire feast with Astarion and Shadowheart. Yet the original poster's point stands: not every beloved life-simulation mechanic belongs in every RPG. A cooking minigame could have been charming, but it also could have become another checklist. Like a cartographer who prizes the blank spaces on a map, twitchy-y sees value in the roads not drawn. The comments also celebrated the lack of microtransactions, a decision that in 2026 feels almost quaint in its generosity.
Here is a quick summary of the omissions that sparked the discussion:
| Omitted Feature | Why Fans Are Grateful |
|---|---|
| Infinite ranged ammo | No ammo shopping between fights |
| No gear degradation | No repair chores |
| No crafting system | Less inventory juggling |
| No out-of-combat stamina | Exploration stays free |
| No fetch quests | Journal stays meaningful |
| No save limits | Experimentation is encouraged |
| No fishing or cooking | Focus remains on adventure |
| No microtransactions | Trust between studio and player |
The Reddit thread became a small campfire of agreement and gentle disagreement. Some players wished for fishing, cooking, or a deeper crafting bench. Others simply nodded at the absence of microtransactions, a business decision that now looks like a relic from a more player-friendly era. What united them was a shared recognition: Baldur's Gate 3 is enormous, but its size is not the same as bloat. The game released in 2023 for PlayStation 5 and PC, then arrived on Xbox the same night it won Game of the Year at the 2023 Game Awards, along with five other categories. By 2026, its mod support has produced a universe of fan-made campaigns, but the core design remains unchanged.
Larian Studios has moved on. The studio is working on its next game, which director Swen Vincke recently joked will not arrive until 2029. A different studio will handle Baldur's Gate 4. Meanwhile, updates for Baldur's Gate 3 have slowed, and none of the features twitchy-y mentioned are likely to be added. That is precisely the point. The game's final shape is a monument to editorial courage, a reminder that a role-playing game can be vast without being cluttered.
For players still wandering the Sword Coast, the lesson is simple: sometimes the best feature is the one that never ships. 🎲
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