Hasbro made gold with Baldur’s Gate 3, the hugely successful Larian Studios RPG. In its Q4 2023 earnings call, the toymaker revealed that the game earned USD 90 million through a licensing deal with the D&D brand. This record windfall demonstrates just how hugely popular and financially successful the Dungeons & Dragons franchise is.
Riding the D&D Wave
Hasbro has seized the opportunity to capitalize on the resurgent mainstream interest for D&D. Classic tabletop RPG was slammed into the cultural zeitgeist by shows like Critical Role’s actual-play series and Stranger Things. Consequently, Baldur’s Gate 3 arrived as the perfect vehicle to turn that interest and awareness into serious business for Hasbro. It was an ideal timing for the company.
In its Q4 earnings report, Hasbro said its Wizards of the Coast division, which produces D&D source books and adventures, saw its revenue rise 7%. This spike came after Baldur’s Gate 3 arrived in August 2023. Whereas the hugely popular Lord of the Rings was set for Magic: While the Gathering certainly contributed to the heavyweight title, Baldur’s Gate 3’s USD 90 million was the clear winner.
Record Breaking Numbers
In true D&D fashion, Baldur’s Gate 3 absolutely decimated sales records and engagement metrics upon its launch. The numbers tell the epic tale of success:
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- Steam by itself sold over 5 million copies.
- Launched with 875,000 concurrent Steam players (3rd highest total ever).
- 20+ million hours watched on Twitch in the first 10 days 10 million hours played during the launch weekend Sold 1 million copies within 6 days of early access launch
Its multiple game modes, branching story and faithful recreation of the 5th edition D&D ruleset clearly riveted millions of players worldwide. Additionally, more streams and videos of Baldur’s Gate 3 content followed, attracting interest from potential fans.
Rebirth of the Legendary CRPG Genre
Beyond the impressive commercial numbers alone, Baldur’s Gate 3’s meteoric rise is a declaration of return to mainstream consciousness of the classic computer RPG genre. That overview puts it simply: “Baldur’s Gate 3 succeeds and the CRPG genre is revived.”
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- CRPGs spent decades in niche territory, adored by hardcore fans but largely ignored by mainstream gamers.
- Larian Studios doubled its staff to produce this epic fantasy adventure.
- Game has among the highest grossing CRPGs ever with sales and engagement metrics.
While Larian kept Baldur’s Gate 3’s true revenue numbers close to the chest, the game’s merely record-breaking sales figures and massive engagement metrics still rank the title among the best CRPGs — if not the largest in history.
Hasbro’s 2023 Struggles
Hasbro laid off around 6,500 workers to reduce costs – resulting in a 15% year-over-year revenue decline USD 1.5 billion net loss for the full year-up-year
But CEO Chris Cocks remains bullish on Hasbro’s future and road to recovery. He cited the company’s brand new “Fewer, Bigger, Better” strategy which puts the company’s largest brands and products first. “We all go through turns… what we’ve done to stabilize our balance sheet and rationalize our inventory gives us a good base to work off of moving forward.”
The Legacy of Hasbro and Baldur’s Gate
After Baldur’s Gate 3 is successful, Hasbro will undoubtedly look for bigger licensing deals.
Larian Studios holds back on expansions/sequels, but more content feels inevitable with the “Patch 6” update with fixes and new Baldur’s Gate 3 content as the years pass by, few 2023 titles left as evocative and impactful as Baldur’s Gate 3. Its significant commercial and cultural footprint makes one thing abundantly clear – we’re witnessing a revival of the computer RPG genre. All right: – bragging rights restored.
