Culture news and discussion on TalkFuse.
Skyrim lead designer Bruce Nesmith loved that Baldur’s Gate 3 closed off story paths based on your decisions, but defends Bethesda’s approach: ‘They were both fun, they’re just fun in different ways’
Bruce Nesmith, lead designer on Skyrim, says he enjoyed how Baldur’s Gate 3 makes some player choices close off parts of the story, while still supporting Bethesda’s more open approach. He argues the two styles create different kinds of fun: Bethesda lets players pursue many factions, while Larian’s restrictions can make decisions feel more consequential.
Nesmith praised Larian’s adaptation of Dungeons & Dragons rules and said he would need another character to explore paths he had missed. The article notes that Bethesda games have also used mutually exclusive quests, including rival guilds in Morrowind and Skyrim’s Civil War and Dark Brotherhood stories. It argues that such choices work best when they feel meaningful rather than forced, and suggests The Elder Scrolls 6 could make more use of them.
In short
- Nesmith enjoyed Baldur’s Gate 3’s consequential choices.
- He still supports Bethesda’s open quest design.
- Both approaches can offer distinct kinds of fun.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Restricting some story paths can make choices feel consequential: players must live with trade-offs, and replaying with another character can reveal meaningfully different outcomes. Nesmith’s praise of Baldur’s Gate 3 suggests this approach can deepen role-playing when the limits feel earned and fit the story.
The case against
A more open design lets players explore many factions and stories in one playthrough, supporting curiosity and freedom without requiring repeated runs. Bethesda’s approach can offer its own kind of fun, and mutually exclusive quests work best when they arise naturally from the story rather than making players feel arbitrarily shut out.
Explained simply
Role-playing games let players shape a character’s story through choices, but designers differ on how much those choices should limit what comes next. Some games allow players to join many groups and explore widely; others close off certain paths when a player commits to a decision.
Bethesda is known for large open worlds, including Skyrim, while Baldur’s Gate 3 was made by Larian Studios and is based on the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing rules. Both games offer branching stories, but they handle competing loyalties and missed quests in different ways.
These choices affect how much freedom players have and how consequential their decisions feel. Bethesda games have also included paths that rule out others, such as rival factions, so the debate is about how often and how clearly games should make players choose.
Culture Entertainment Fashion Gaming