Carla

Thank you for your sweet comment, Brian!

Oh, I adore Minthara. She’s such an excellent spin on the traditional Paladin. And Emma Gregory’s performance is among the best in the game in my opinion. I had the privilege and pleasure of hearing Gregory talk more about her craft and the way she approached Minthara at DragonCon 2025—a highlight of my year!

And to echo your thoughts, I agree that Shadowheart is so, so special. I was choked up every time something major happened with her in Act 3. I can see how for many players like you, she can edge out even a golden retriever like Karlach! I don’t think I have a favorite between the two romances, though:)

Cheers!

Hey, Angie! You’ve commented on some of my articles before, glad to see you back:)

Astarion ranked highly across most categories, but ranked dead last for plot relevance. That prevented him from being in first place. Shadowheart was comfortably in the middle. Meanwhile Lae’zel rose to the top with flying colors!

The note before the ranking states this:) I excluded Halsin, Jaheira, Minthara, and Minsc because:

• The player doesn’t spend as much time with them.

• 2/4 of these companions don’t have romances. I used romance as a criteria for the final rankings.

• They are not origin companions, so their narrative depth is inherently limited.

That isn’t to say they are not great, though! Do you have a favorite?

Haha, even past the character creator if you can believe it! I’ve beaten the game a couple of times, my shortest playthrough was about 80 hours and the rest have averaged at about 150~ ish hours. I want to do another playthrough soon!

It sounds like your enchantress was a support mage, while Gale was on the offense. True balance! I made the mistake of making both Gale and my Tav tankier mages. In the late game, I started giving him some healing capabilities to reel him back into the party, but the damage had been done, and the realization came too late.

I loved reading about your connection to Gale, Rico. These characters are so special, which is why I love learning about how others connect to someone in camp. He's such an incredible character, and Tim Downie did such a phenomenal job. Everyone on the cast did a fantastic job, but he's definitely one of my favorites. I want to continue a Durge run where I had begun a romance with Gale, actually! I had abandoned it some time ago in favor of Tav. And I totally agree with you, his more down-to-earth romance route is the best way to approach his romance!

In a game with names like Wulbren Bongle and Zumbo Pumbo, I think Tavla is pretty tame. But I’m always open to name suggestions—I play a lot of life sims! What’s your Tav’s name, Angie?

But yes, I wrote about the blank slate and the fleshed out stories in the article. There are things I’d do differently for future playthroughs.

Mad respect to DMs, they keep parties balanced! But absolutely, you're doing what a good DM does. All the DMs I've played with have been diligent in ensuring that no roles are similar, and it's been a game-saver for sure.

I didn't think about party size limits, but that's actually a great point. Maybe my issues with BG3 may be fixed with a party expansion mod!

The article claims that Stardew Valley made the cozy genre "explode" since its release in 2016, which isn't untrue! Cozy gaming has seen a renaissance since Stardew dropped, cementing a legacy for itself and the genre's standards. I agree, there would be no Stardew without Harvest Moon or many of the sims that came before it - but this article is about a game that stems its inspiration from Stardew.

The concept of "cozy" gaming has existed since the 1990s, but it has undergone significant changes from its original form. The term started gaining traction in the 2010s and 2020s thanks to titles like Stardew.

For the sake of avoiding the controversy that comes with making something canon, I hope this is indeed the approach. What made me raise my brows is that WotC has confirmed that there will be a narrative portion surrounding Astarion's past and even one of his favorite places. So indeed, Astarion fans will be getting new content that is more than just quirky side text. What prevents writers, then, from expanding on the future as well? Hopefully, they'll expand on existing canon but not double-dip into the future!

Even the most seasoned Bhaalspawn isn’t immune to Baldur’s Gate 3’s branching design! Some content (including dialogue or party member revelations) is literally locked behind choices, party comp, or specific moment-to-moment decisions—so it’s not just about missing a chest hidden behind a rock. This is the kind of game that hides entire NPCs behind the rarest scenarios (like, knowing to knock out a certain bard while playing as Durge, or only having three party members after the goblin camp, etc.); so genuinely, it's almost (fully?) Impossible to 100% the game in one go in terms of this special content.

The article title is accurate because of how intricate BG3 is—not in spite of it. Lots of veteran players miss pretty cool content, no shame in that. ❤ But hey, congrats to you! Pretty awesome that you knew all this.

Like you, Jakob, I'm a maximalist when gaming—I try to find everything on my first run. And like you, I'm still discovering new content! Baldur's Gate 3 is absolutely stunning. I hope that someday I'll get to experience a 10th playthrough like you 😄