Baldur’s Gate 3 writer says they’re sorry they “fumbled” an infamous community romance: “At least you know I ship it”

If there’s one thing Baldur’s Gate 3 stans have been dreaming about, it’s the ability to romance Gortash – and one of Larian Studios’ former narrative design leads wishes they could make it come true.

The Baldur’s Gate 3 companions are unique, each with distinct personalities and looks – from the aggressive Lae’zel to the cunning Astarion. There’s just one flavor of companion missing, and it’s one that would complement Dark Urge Tavs quite nicely – evil. You could argue that Minthara fits the bill, but she just doesn’t cut it compared to the main three antagonists – Orin, Ketheric, and the handsome devil stealing fans’ hearts, Gortash.

It isn’t just fans, though – the RPG’s companion and romance lead would also love to rewrite the script to allow for long-requested Dark Urge x Gortash action. Speaking in an interview with Eurogamer, writer Baudelaire Welch reveals that while they personally “believe in the Dark Urge x Gortash ship wholeheartedly,” they “never saw it coming.” Gortash’s popularity came as a surprise – as did his presentation in-game.

“I think we always imagined that Gortash was going to be an 80-year-old man over the course of development, and then we saw his model and it was like, ‘Oh!'” Suddenly, the villain was more akin to a hot emo boy band vocalist than an elder like Ketheric. “I so, so, so wish that I had seen that coming and added some optional hints of reactivity into that whole thing,” says Welch, thinking back on the possibilities.

In a follow-up post about the Dark Urge x Gortash ship that sadly never sailed, Welch jokes that they’re “Sorry I fumbled the aging scene band frontman x bad dragon” – but says “at least you know I ship it.” Unfortunately, it’s likely that Larian won’t get around to allowing us to smooch the bad guy with good hair – the studio recently said you still can’t make out with the “complicated” yet handsome Gortash in the RPG’s upcoming patch.

Baldur’s Gate 3 players have been so busy kissing Shadowheart, the RPG’s most-smooched companion, her actor says “I think I’ve sprained my tongue”