Baldur’s Gate 3 Patch 8 has finally released, adding some of the most significant changes the game has yet seen. The road to release for Patch 8 has been uniquely long, with seven months passing since Patch 7 was added in September 2024. With Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios shifting its focus to new titles in development, Patch 8 hasn’t been the only priority.

Patch 8 is also consequently positioned as the final major update for Baldur’s Gate 3, putting an unusual amount of weight on its shoulders. While some of the best features for the game’s longevity have already arrived, like Patch 7’s modding support, Patch 8 is no slouch. With features ranging from a long-anticipated photo mode to a host of new subclasses, there’s plenty to be excited about here.

Halsin & Minthara Are Less Particular

Inconsistent Companion Triggers Get Some Fixes

As characters who can only be unlocked through specific triggers, Halsin and Minthara can both be a bit inconsistent to recruit in Baldur’s Gate 3. Previous patches have fixed some issues along with making Minthara a bit easier to recruit in general, for better or worse. Patch 8 cleans things up with a few more key improvements, as described in the official patch notes available on the Baldur’s Gate 3 website.

According to the patch notes, you no longer need to celebrate the tieflings’ survival at camp in Act One to get Halsin to appear in Act Two, so long as the party did indeed save him. Persistent issues with non-lethal approaches to Minthara removing her from the story have gotten another update, reinforcing her appearance at Moonrise Towers after being knocked out, and a couple of smaller issues with her interactions have also been tweaked.

Steam Trading Cards Have Arrived

Extra Fun For Collectors

Although most of the major additions in Patch 8 apply to all systems, a couple are system-specific. One is the addition of trading cards, a feature that only exists within the Steam digital marketplace on PC. Trading cards can be collected passively by playing a few hours of the game. Earning a complete set by bartering with other players or buying cards on the marketplace can unlock rewards like a profile badge, emoticons, and more.

Baldur’s Gate 3 now features 11 trading cards, each depicting one of the game’s party members (including the Dark Urge playable character). Six can be earned by playing, although you’ll probably get some duplicates, and getting the other five plus relies on trades or purchases. It may not change the game itself, but the addition of trading cards is definitely fun for collectors.

BG3 Now Has Split-Screen On Xbox Series S

Feature Parity At Long Last

The other major platform-specific addition is split-screen support for the Xbox Series S. While Baldur’s Gate 3 already featured split-screen co-op gameplay on every other system, it was left out of the Series S release due to performance issues on the weaker hardware. Its initial exclusion was a major break from Xbox’s feature parity requirement, which demands that games include the same elements on both Series S and Series X, showing that Microsoft was willing to make an exception to get an extremely desirable game in the ecosystem.

The patch notes don’t go into detail on the Series S split-screen addition, but it’s presumably the result of continued optimization work on the game. There are also some split-screen fixes and added options for every platform, which should hopefully provide a more seamless experience for everyone.

Optimization & Graphics Settings Receive Tweaks

More Frames Than Ever Before

Baldur’s Gate 3 has been on quite the journey in terms of optimization, especially when it comes to Act 3, which initially struggled even on high-end hardware. Patch 8 brings a particularly long list of performance and graphics tweaks to the table.

A few of these changes come in the form of new settings toggles (on the other end, some obsolete ones have also been removed). The new ability to change terrain texture quality on the game’s DirectX 11 version, for example, could help some struggling hardware. Most of these tweaks won’t necessarily be visible to the naked eye, but they should hopefully result in higher framerates across the board.

Combat Fixes Address Inconsistencies

No Big Changes, But Plenty Of Band-Aids

While Patch 7 spiced up Honour Mode combat with some new Legendary Actions, Patch 8 is more focused on fixing combat problems across the board. Many of these have to do with unintended limitations for various spells and abilities, fixing them to apply more consistently even in relatively unlikely scenarios. Certain descriptions have also been updated to fix errors or clarify the function of spells and abilities.

Accompanying these changes are a few adjustments to specific fights, particularly when it comes to showdowns with major antagonists. Foes like Malus Thorm, Orin, and Gortash have a few tweaks, which are focused less on making things easier or harder and more on making them work as they should. The showdowns with Ketheric Thorm and other enemies in Moonrise Towers are now less easy to manipulate. Fleeing requires a more extensive escape, and long resting will now give the armies of the Absolute an equal opportunity to recover.

Improved Cinematics Enhance Immersion

Punching Up The Animations

Another round of Baldur’s Gate 3 fixes, unsurprisingly, means another pass at the game’s cinematics. This constitutes changes to “camera shots, mocap animations, character staging, and facial expressions” across dialogues, along with fixes for problems like “pops, jitters, and clipping.”

From the start, Baldur’s Gate 3 already had a fairly strong implementation of motion capture, but the continued refinement of the game’s cinematics allows for more character expression and patches over a number of issues. With a wide cast of characters and custom protagonists, it’s no surprise that occasional problems can crop up, but it’s not something that should be happening frequently after eight rounds of patches.

Mod Support Adds Partial Level Editing To BG3

Unlocking The Toolkit Just A Bit More

Baldur’s Gate 3‘s official mod support came with some restrictions, opening more opportunities for cosmetic and character changes than custom story or level content. It didn’t take long for modders to unlock the toolkit and remove some of these barriers, however, and now the official version is also loosening its grip a bit.

The new support for partial level editing makes it possible to add to environments, alter NPCs, and create custom interactive objects. It still doesn’t allow for changes to “the static parts of the world” or custom dialogue, but that’s where the unofficial unlocked toolkit can come into play, at least for PC users. The official guidelines for mods have also been adjusted in accordance with the new features.

Photo Mode Makes Recording A BG3 Journey Fun

Capturing A Campaign In Style

Despite the incredible detail of Baldur’s Gate 3‘s world, it’s always been a bit hard to photograph, with a birds-eye view and a busy (although easily toggleable) UI making for underwhelming screenshots. Patch 8 finally adds a photo mode to get around these restrictions, making it much easier to memorialize the journey in a fun way.

Larian shared the above images as notable photo mode creations from Discord server users, created by Daz, bg3ishwondergoth, and red_dragon_bish, respectively.

In the photo mode, the poses of party members can be altered during regular gameplay, and camera settings and filters can inject some additional style. For even more flair, over 300 stickers are available to slap onto photos, with the potential for far more to be added through the modding toolkit’s support.

Cross-Play Opens More Doors For Co-Op Campaigns

Group Up Across Platforms

Baldur’s Gate 3 now features full cross-play and cross-platform progression support in Patch 8, making it easy to link up with other players or continue your own progress across every platform that the game is on. With support for PC, Mac, Xbox, and PS5, that should remove a major barrier to getting a full party going for a co-op adventure.

The game features a Multiplayer option on the main menu where cross-play lobbies can be created and joined, so the process isn’t too involved. The only major complication is that mod compatibility can naturally be an issue, so all players need to be on the same page. A Mod Verification window will pop up when joining to streamline the process of changing your mod loadout as needed.

12 New Subclasses Join The Fray

So Much More To Try

While many of Patch 8’s biggest changes focus on quality-of-life features, the most substantial gameplay addition is unquestionably the surplus of new subclasses. Each of Baldur’s Gate 3‘s 12 classes has received an additional subclass, bringing plenty of fan-favorite options from Dungeons & Dragons into the digital world.

Path of the Giant Barbarian
College of Glamour Bard
Death Domain Cleric
Circle of Stars Druid
Arcane Archer Fighter
Way of the Drunken Master Monk
Oath of the Crown Paladin
Swarmkeeper Ranger
Swashbuckler Rogue
Shadow Magic Sorcerer
Hexblade Warlock
Bladesinging Wizard

These can be unlocked at level one, two, or three depending on the class, but if you’re already deep into a playthrough, you can also re-spec by talking to Withers. From the Swashbuckler Rogue’s flair for the piratical to the Way of the Drunken Master Monk’s gracefully graceless fighting style, these new subclasses fill in some fun gaps. If you’re looking for a reason to hop back into Baldur’s Gate 3 with the release of Patch 8, the new subclasses might just be the very best motivation.