Larian Head Promises Not to Sacrifice Narrative Quality for Scale in the New ‘Divinity’
Aleksandr Manin
Swen Vincke, founder and head of Larian Studios, has responded to fan concerns that the scale of the new Divinity could negatively impact the quality of its storytelling. In December 2025, during The Game Awards, the studio unveiled its most ambitious project to date — a turn-based RPG set in the world of Rivellon.
Following the announcement, discussions erupted on social media about whether Larian could maintain its signature narrative depth while offering such extensive player freedom. One fan directly asked Vincke on Twitter how the studio plans to expand the game’s scale and player agency without sacrificing emotional depth across individual story branches.
Vincke acknowledged the difficulty of the task but assured players that the team is doing everything possible to preserve narrative quality across all branching paths.
We really are aiming for greater variability, and you’re right that it’s not easy to ensure the same narrative quality in every individual branch. But we’re doing everything we can to achieve that. I think any narrative tricks are largely offset by players understanding that they reached a certain outcome because of their own choices, rather than being forced down predefined rails.
Divinity marks Larian’s return to its own franchise following the massive success of Baldur's Gate 3, which won numerous awards and attracted millions of fans worldwide. The new title is not a direct sequel to Divinity: Original Sin 2, but a standalone project set in the same universe. At the same time, prior knowledge of the series is not required to understand the story.
The debut Divinity trailer shown at The Game Awards surprised audiences with its dark and brutal tone. It featured ritual executions, dark magic, and horror elements — a stark contrast to the lighter atmosphere of Baldur's Gate 3, not to mention the earlier entries in the series.
Vincke also confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg that Divinity will be a turn-based RPG, but promises to push the genre to a new level:
This will be us without constraints. It’s a turn-based RPG that includes everything you’ve seen from us before — but taken to the next level.
Unlike Baldur's Gate 3, where the studio adapted the rules of Dungeons & Dragons, Divinity is being built around a completely original system designed from the ground up specifically for a digital format. Larian is also developing a new engine to support more advanced cinematic storytelling.
Divinity does not yet have a release date. Vincke confirmed that the game will enter early access ahead of its full 1.0 launch, which is not expected before 2027. Divinity will be available on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch 2.
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