When Baldur’s Gate 3 scooped the 2023 Game of the Year award it was just rewards for the tremendous hard work that had gone into it to make it such an amazing achievement. That we are sat here in 2025 preparing for the eighth major update of the game shows the commitment that the team at Larian has for its magnum opus, and at the same time, continually pushes the game to even greater heights.
While we have no confirmed date for Patch 8, what we do have is information on what it will contain, and also the opportunity to get involved in its early days.
One of the big deals of Patch 8 in BG3 is the arrival of cross-play – now you can party up with friends on other platforms for the first time, and Larian need players to test this out. To do so it is launching a stress test for the game which you can register for here.
You can help stress test the patch on Xbox and PC, but while cross-play will be compatible with Mac when it launches, Apple systems are not included in the stress test.
Once you have signed up, access will be granted in waves, although Larian does say registering does not guarantee access.
Implementing cross-play is a huge undertaking and hopefully the game will not be beset by the kinds of problems that occurred when the Xbox version released.
What else is in Patch 8?
It seems as though we are getting 12 new subclasses – one for each existing class in the game, opening up even more options of play.
We are also getting Photo Mode for the first time and it is QoL additions such as these that will ultimately make Baldur’s Gate 3 one of the greatest videogames ever made, if it isn’t already.
Patch 8 bug fixes
Along with the new features, Larian is continuing to clean up animation pops, clipping, and have fixed bugs, including the likes of:
- Fixed a savegame issue where you wouldn’t get the appropriate amount of Umbral Gems for the Gauntlet of Shar.
- Fixed an issue causing you to get stuck at a 0% loading screen when attempting to join a multiplayer session that uses mods.
- Your character will no longer think Shadowheart is dead if she isn’t when talking to Viconia
- Halsin will now show up to your camp in Act II as long as you save him, even if you happen to skip the celebration with the tieflings at camp.
- Improved performance in the Adamantine Forge.
- Minthara will now comment on (spoiler removed) reveal.
- Cerys will stop getting involved in combats with Minthara from across the region. An eager beaver no longer.
- We’ve also reminded Minthara that ‘knocked out’ does not mean ‘dead’, so she’ll more reliably appear in Moonrise Towers.
- Fixed companions’ lines getting cut off prematurely after Gale (Spoiler removed) at the end of the game.
- Fixed a bug preventing Wyll from commenting on Astarion holding a blade to your throat during Astarion’s recruitment dialogue by the beach.
- Barcus is no longer Mike Wazowski’d by various items like cauldrons and bottles blocking him off from view when you talk to him at Last Light.