A couple of weeks ago, we sat down with Thomas Loughlin and Gregory Lotrich to take us behind the scenes of the upcoming fan-made expansion Path to Menzoberranzan, which promises to be the biggest and most ambitious custom campaign for Baldur’s Gate 3 yet. This expansion will take players through breathtaking stories set in locations like Athkatla, also known as the City of Coin from Baldur's Gate 2, and Menzoberranzan. It also introduces unique gameplay mechanics, entirely custom storylines, new companions, and much more.

We also learned that one of the biggest challenges the developers are facing in bringing so much new content to life is perfecting the animations. They consider the animation work in Baldur’s Gate 3 to be a 10/10 and aim to achieve something around an 8/10. While this means there may be a slight drop in quality compared to what the official studio delivered, we can still expect impressive visuals, and this progress update is here to prove it.

Athkatla and Menzoberranzan are looking stunning

The latest progress update from one of the team members highlights the stunning environments of Athkatla and Menzoberranzan, and from first impressions, they have absolutely nailed it. The visual quality looks impressive, and there is just so much detail to take in. From the food carefully laid out on tables to books floating through the air, the modders haven’t cut corners anywhere. The NPCs are richly detailed, making the world feel lively, and at one point, you can also see natural light pour through the windows. It's incredible to see this level of craftsmanship from such a small team, and if this is just a preview, the full experience is shaping up to be something truly special.

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Apart from the visual quality, the progress update didn't share much. However, we did hear a few NPC dialogues in the video, one at the beginning between a merchant and a buyer about potential theft and another later on discussing the city, though it was hard to make sense of. On the topic of voicing NPCs, we already know that the team will soon start accepting auditions for some talented voice actors to be a part of the campaign and bring the game's NPCs to life. So keep an eye out for that as well.

The first public Beta is still months away

That said, the BG3 community is more than excited to try out the Path to Menzoberranzan expansion, and it looks like the wait won't be long. In a Reddit announcement about the progress update, Lotich promises the mod will provide players with a “completely new gameplay experience, by adding fully voiced companions, enemies and rich storyline”. One user asked the modders for an estimated release date. In response, developer Lotrich replied, “5-6 months till the first public Beta. Ofc it will be a concept proof type of Beta.”

This means we won't be getting a fully polished or feature-complete release, but we can expect an early version meant to demonstrate the basic functionality or feasibility of the project. However, BG3 fans on consoles won't be able to explore the world of Athkatla, as the modders are currently focusing only on a PC release. While Baldur's Gate 3 custom campaign modders would “love” to bring it to consoles, it's unlikely to happen.

If you want to stay on top of the development of this mod, we recommend checking out the Path to Menzoberranzan Discord server, or Lotrich’s Patreon for screenshots, music, and more.

About the Author

Hassam Nasir

Hassam boasts over seven years of professional experience as a dedicated PC hardware reviewer and writer.