Thought You Were Finished with Baldur’s Gate 3? Think Again: Larian Introduces Photo Mode, Cross-Play, and 12 New Subclasses in 2025

Though many of us are still deeply engrossed in our current playthroughs, Baldur’s Gate 3 has some exciting new content slated for next year that will surely entice even the most devoted players to dive in for yet another round. On a personal note, I’m still trying to wrap up my first playthrough!

Announcements via the game’s social media and a Steam blog post have confirmed that Baldur’s Gate 3 isn’t done expanding just yet. Despite prior claims from Larian Studios suggesting they were finished with major updates for the massive RPG, they keep returning to enrich the game. This recurring cycle almost mirrors the continued development seen from the team behind games like Terraria and Binding of Isaac.

Even as the game hosts a thriving modding community, Larian is intent on gifting fans more official updates. Next year, Patch 8 will make a dramatic entrance with features we’ve been eagerly anticipating: cross-play, a photo mode, and twelve fresh subclasses. While the photo mode has been a vocal request from the community, cross-play comes as a delightful surprise, transforming BG3 into an even more immersive social experience. Naturally, with the addition of new subclasses, expect players to once again venture into character creation—because let’s face it, who can resist fresh options for their Dungeons & Dragons adventures?

Cross-play won’t just be a checked box; it will bring full cross-platform progression and cross-play capabilities. Players can open and share lobbies across platforms, though whether these will be publicly listable for random matchmaking remains to be seen.

The photo mode arrives with a robust set of features, offering plenty of creative freedom. Players can tweak camera and lens settings, adjust scene elements like poses and facial expressions, and apply post-processing effects, frames, and even stickers. It’s almost certain that our most dedicated players will pair these features with mods to unleash all kinds of creative, and likely chaotic, results.

In addition, Patch 8 introduces a new subclass for each of the 12 classes:

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

Looking ahead, stress tests are scheduled for January to fine-tune cross-play and implement additional fixes with Patch 8. Given these plans, it seems we’ll need to exercise a bit of patience, with the final release expected no sooner than February 2025. Keep an eye out for our updates as we track the progress of this eagerly awaited patch.