Some of Baldur's Gate 3's new evil endings are so nasty they're hard to watch, and there's a unique variation for each origin character

GamesRPGBaldur’s GateBaldur’s Gate 3Some of Baldur’s Gate 3’s new evil endings are so nasty they’re hard to watch, and there’s a unique variation for each origin characterWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: Larian)

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If you’re anything like me, you greeted the news of Baldur’s Gate 3’s expanded evil endings in themammoth Patch 7with a “Oh, that sounds interesting, but there’s no way I could stomach actually unlocking them.” Luckily for us soft-hearted roleplayers, those bad boys are on YouTube in force, and they’re well-worth seeing⁠—even if it’s just to give some added weight to your “canon” happy ending.Spoilers ahead for Patch 7’s new endings.

There’s the basic binary choice at the end of the game where you either destroy or enslave mind flayer superbrain The Absolute, with thenew ending variationsall flowing from the latter choice. There are atonof different ways it can play out, with your character achieving the ending as a mind flayer or not, and with or without the support of the Emperor. If the Emperor’s still around, you have the choice to either play second fiddle to him or betray him at the last second, usurping control as in the other evil endings.

[SPOILER] All New Evil Generic Endings. Patch 7. Baldur’s Gate 3 - YouTubeWatch On

[SPOILER] All New Evil Generic Endings. Patch 7. Baldur’s Gate 3 - YouTube

One thing that surprised me was the possibility of turning into an illithid against your will after taking control of the Absolute: You have to pass a Constitution check based on how many mind flayer tadpoles you ate throughout the game, with failure causing you to graphically undergo ceremorphosis and get a unique ending where the illithid “Grand Design” begins.

Pass that check, though, and you get a fun little option to “exercise your will,” directing the newly-enslaved people of Baldur’s Gate toward a selection of evil guy activities, with a unique cutscene for each one. The evil scenes include:

[SPOILER] New Dark Urge Evil Ending. Patch 7. Baldur’s Gate 3 - YouTubeWatch On

[SPOILER] New Dark Urge Evil Ending. Patch 7. Baldur’s Gate 3 - YouTube

It feels like a fitting send-off for Baldur’s Gate 3, even if Larian does have a few smaller updates still planned. The game’s less popular evil endings have gotten high quality cutscenes that expertly detangle the sprawl of different options and variations possible, and I have to imagine that these new endings at least rival the happy ending epilogue party in terms of effort and cost. The fact that Larian balled out so much for endings only a minority of players have pursued is just another impressive example of the studio’s craft, capping off an entire game of “I can’t believe there’s a special cutscene for this insane edge-case choice I made.”

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Even if you never pursue these new endings in your own save, they lend some real depth and stakes to the story. The feel good party at the end of a good-guy playthrough feels genuinely hard-won when there are such shocking and gruesome alternatives to contrast with, and the fact thatother people’s BG3 experiences can look completely different to my ownlends a real richness to this game that already has so much else going for it.

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