rpg

Flawed, even hateable companions make RPG romances more compelling, PC Gamer says

PC Gamer columnist Harvey Randall argues RPG companions should be obstructive and flawed to create stronger stories and relationships. He uses a Baldur's Gate 3 Honour Mode romance with Gale as an example, where Gale's petty, self-destructive reaction to lukewarm praise made the relationship feel three-dimensional. Gale's behaviour fits his backstory—he was groomed by the god of magic and previously told by an ex to blow himself up—so his insecurity deepens the narrative rather than undermining it.

• Harvey Randall wrote in PC Gamer's Dungeon Master column that designers should make RPG companions obstructive and morally messy to unlock storytelling potential.
• In Randall's Baldur's Gate 3 playthrough, romancing Gale becomes memorable after Gale sulks at being told 'it was fine' and threatens to blow himself up.
• Tim Downie supplies Gale's quiet, brooding petulance in the quoted dialogue that sells the character's reaction.
• Gale's petty insecurity is grounded in his backstory—being groomed by a god of magic and having an ex who encouraged self-destruction—making the flaw narratively believable.