Baldur's Gate 3 Split-Screen Co-Op Still Needs Some Big Improvements (2024)

Baldur's Gate 3 split-screen co-op still needs some major improvements that will hopefully be implemented in future updates. In a day and age when many AAA games completely ignore split-screen co-op, it's greatly appreciated that Baldur's Gate 3 gives players the chance to experience the entire game in split-screen, even if it is sometimes rough around the edges.

While Baldur's Gate 3 can be played solo, it can also be played by four players online or two players split-screen. Co-op partners are able to create their own custom character or take control of existing Baldur's Gate 3 companions, free to complete quests, interact with NPCs, engage in fights, and do literally anything that the host player can do. It's great that Baldur's Gate 3 doesn't treat co-op partners like second-class citizens like other games have been known to do, but there are still some issues with the split-screen co-op that need fixed.

The big thing is that Baldur's Gate 3 split-screen co-op seems to trigger more frequent crashes in Act 3, but there are other inconveniences associated with BG3 split-screen co-op that need fixed as well. More Baldur's Gate 3 updates are in the works, but it's unclear if they will fix these split-screen co-op issues or if fans will have to be satisfied with how the feature works now.

Baldur's Gate 3 Act 3 Crashing

Baldur's Gate 3 Act 3 has been somewhat of a sore spot for players ever since the game originally launched. While there are those who play through the entire game without running into any kind of serious technical problem, there are also many who have taken online to complain about frequent crashing in Act 3. This problem is not split-screen specific, but in my experience, Act 3 crashing does seem to happen more frequently when playing in split-screen.

Just recently, I wrote about how Baldur's Gate 3 kept crashing in Act 3 when at least one character was in Elfsong Tavern. This happened multiple times in a row, and the only way to fix it was to play the game in single-player until there was no longer a need to go into Elfsong Tavern. The crashing issues went away for a bit, but they still rear their ugly head from time to time, like at the end of big, drawn-out fights.

Losing large chunks of playtime to crashes is incredibly frustrating, and it seems to happen a lot more frequently while playing in split-screen co-op. It's possible that it's just a coincidence that Baldur's Gate 3 crashes more for me in split-screen, but either way, Act 3 crashing is a problem that still needs to be addressed.

BG3 Co-Op Objectives Disappear

Baldur's Gate 3 gives co-op players an incredible amount of freedom. While players have to stay within the same general zone, they are otherwise free to go wherever they want. This includes entering buildings and delving into caves that trigger a load screen and therefore have their own maps. Unfortunately, whenever players do this, the objective markers completely disappear from their maps.

For example, one Baldur's Gate 3 player could be exploring the Lower City, making their way from one objective marker to the next, while their partner decides to go into a basem*nt that triggers a loading screen. The Lower City objective markers will completely disappear, and so the player still exploring the town has to wander aimlessly and hope they stumble on where they're supposed to go. The objective markers come back once players are in the same zone again, but this is still a frustrating oversight that can hamper the split-screen co-op experience in Baldur's Gate 3.

BG3 Names in Top Left Corner Won't Go Away

There are even more problems tied to the Baldur's Gate 3 map in split-screen co-op beyond objective markers disappearing. One particularly annoying quirk about split-screen is that players' gamertags stick to the top-left corner of the screen with no way of turning them off at the time of this writing. Since one is likely sitting right next to the person they're playing with when playing split-screen, there is really no reason why the names need to be on the screen at all, let alone blocking the mini-map for the first player. The names make the mini-map effectively unusable for player 1, and so they instead have to rely on the mini-map for player 2, or otherwise open their full map a lot more than they would have to do if the names were simply removed.

Baldur's Gate 3 Co-Op Achievements Not Unlocking

Despite Baldur's Gate 3 split-screen co-op letting the second player sign in with their own account, that second player is completely unable to unlock achievements in the game. Baldur's Gate 3 achievements are restricted to player 1, which would be fine, except it seems as though the second player can actually lock player 1 out of unlocking certain achievements. Without delving into spoilers, in my playthrough, player 2 romanced a certain Baldur's Gate 3 character who has a romance achievement tied to them. The achievement did not unlock, which means another playthrough of making the same choice will be necessary to unlock all the game's achievements. Certain Baldur's Gate 3 achievements not unlocking in co-op wouldn't be nearly as annoying if the second player was at least earning the achievements, but they do not.

Baldur's Gate 3 is an award-winning game and deserves the high praise it's received, but there is still certainly room for improvement, especially when it comes to the game's split-screen co-op. Here's hoping future Baldur's Gate 3 updates address these issues and make an already all-time great game even better.

Baldur's Gate 3

Baldur's Gate 3 is a Dungeons and Dragons inspired RPG developed and published by Larian Studios. Featuring both a single player and cooperative element, players create their character by selecting a starting class, take on quests, level up, and engage in turn-based combat using the D&D 5th edition rule set.

Franchise

Baldur's Gate

Platform(s)

PC , macOS , PS5 , Xbox Series X

Released

August 3, 2023

Developer(s)

Larian Studios

Publisher(s)

Larian Studios

Genre(s)

RPG

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Violence

How Long To Beat

30 Hours

Metascore

96

Split Screen Orientation

Vertical Only

Number of Players

1-4

PS Plus Availability

N/A

Local Co-Op Support

1-2 Players

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