After Baldur’s Gate 3 players noticed nude character models offscreen during character creation, Larian Studios has explained the technical reasons for “The Realm of Naked Men.”
Baldur’s Gate 3 is full of secrets and mysteries to uncover, though not all of these are ones developer Larian Studios probably expected players to find.
One example is the swarm of nude character models (joined by one fully dressed default Dark Urge) players have noticed standing just off-screen during character creation. Though normally not visible, those who encounter issues with the game and mods are transported to what fans have dubbed “The Realm of Naked Men.”
Now, after joining in on the fun on social media, Larian has explained why these character models are there.
Baldur’s Gate’s nude character creation models are there for technical reasons
After responding to a tweet pointing out the so-called “Realm of Naked Men,” Larian actually explained the game design reasons for all the off-screen character models.
Speaking to GamesRadar+, the developer revealed these men are a technical necessity.
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“Primarily, they are used as VO dummies,” Larian said. “When you select your voice in the character creator, it needs to be assigned to a physical dummy character in order to play. So, one of these random naked dudes will pipe up from the shadows, playing samples of your chosen voice.”
The Realm of Naked Men: they also silently judge your character creation choices, but don't tell anyone about that. https://t.co/4OFmBHzOCI
— Larian Studios (@larianstudios) September 28, 2023
Larian also explained the secondary purpose for the men is to “have a physical avatar assigned to the player in the background, while the player creates their own Tav.”
None of this explains why the character models are naked, why there’s a default Dark Urge among them, or why some have genitals while others look like Ken dolls. Still, Larian’s explanation does give some interesting insight into game development and the technical details studios need to accomodate for that players normally don’t get to see.
If you liked this, be sure to check out the rest of our Baldur’s Gate 3 coverage, which includes the latest news, guides, and much more.
