Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge writer apologizes for ‘fumbling’ Gortash romance

The creator of Baldur’s Gate 3’s Dark Urge expressed regret to fans who support a romantic relationship between the character and the villainous Gortash, acknowledging the absence of an official romance in the game.

Undoubtedly, Enver Gortash has been the most controversial character in Baldur’s Gate 3. As the leader of the Cult of the Absolute and Chosen of Bane, the God of Tyranny, he has garnered a large following of fans who are hoping for a more favorable outcome for him.

Despite the excitement surrounding Gortash, there are some players who fail to see the appeal. They often ridicule the fact that in the game, he is portrayed as a “good-looking young man with a charming smile.”

Some have also suggested that the game include the Jason Isaacs-voiced villain as a potential romance option, particularly for players choosing the Dark Urge Origin character, as there is a significant backstory between them.

Baudelaire Welch, the romance and companion design lead for Baldur’s Gate 3, who also wrote the story for Dark Urge, has acknowledged that they would have made different choices had they anticipated the players’ reactions to the characters.

Baldur's Gate 3 Gortash — Larian Studios

In a conversation with Eurogamer, Welch openly endorsed the Dark Urge x Gortash relationship, stating that they fully support it, although they did not anticipate it during the game’s development.

It appears that the main reason for this is that the writers had a very different vision for Gortash compared to what ended up being portrayed in the final product.

“According to Welch, our original perception was that Gortash would age to be an elderly man of 80 years during the development process.”

Despite this, the team’s perception shifted once they were introduced to Gortash’s character model and Jason Isaac’s performance. This prompted Welch to express regret, stating, “I deeply wish I had anticipated this and incorporated some optional hints of reactivity throughout the entire process.”

Fans of the unconventional Dark Urge/Gortash love story wasted no time sharing excerpts from the interview, leading to Welch’s apologetic response, “I apologize for not capturing the aging scene between the band’s frontman and bad dragon to your satisfaction, but at least you know I support their relationship.”

Regrettably for those supporters, Larian has explicitly stated that there are no plans for a Gortash romance. In their recent developer updates leading up to Patch 7, the team even went as far as to declare, “Let’s be real, he’s a complex individual who is preoccupied with the intricacies of death cult hierarchy. There’s simply no time for him to engage in romantic pursuits.”