The game’s developers recently said that two copies of Baldur’s Gate 3 have been sold in Vatican City.
Baldur’s Gate 3 Shows Up In some Unexpected Places
If you go back 20 years ago and say you were a gamer, you might get some strange looks from a lot of people. Back then, gaming was seen as a somewhat odd and nerdy hobby. But now gaming is so common that we could often find it in some unexpected places. Despite that, it’s still somewhat weird when you know that at least two people in the Vatican City play Baldur’s Gate 3.
That’s right, according to a recent tweet by the director of publishing of Larian Studios (the game’s developers), recently two copies of the critically acclaimed title were sold in the holy city. “Wish I could see their mod list. Bet it’s absolutely gnarly,” the director said.
When you think about it, the fact that there are at least two people in the Vatican playing Baldur’s Gate 3, means that there’s a big per-capita proportion of the micronation’s population enjoying the title. For context, the Vatican has a population of less than 800 people, most of whom are clergymen. This means that about 0.2% of the nation’s inhabitants play the game. If we upscale the Vatican to a city of 1 million people, that means that there would be at least 2 000 gamers playing Baldur’s Gate 3.
But Who Is Actually Playing It?
As much as it would be funny to think that the Pope himself is creating a character and going on an adventure, he’s probably not the one playing the game. For a start, it’s doubtful that a person as busy as him would have the time to enjoy the extensive and time-consuming experience of the title. Furthermore, considering the current Pope is at the venerable age of 87, he’s probably not very much into video games as a whole (but who knows, maybe he’s a real gamer in his private life).
However, there’s a lot of younger staff around him that might be the culprit for the two bought Baldur’s Gate 3 copies. For example, of the 800 or so residents of the Vatican, about 100 are the Papal guard. Also known as the Pontifical Swiss Guard, or simply The Swiss Guard, this is an armed force and honor guard unit maintained by the Holy See. It’s tasked with protecting the Pope and the Apostolic Palace within the territory of the Vatican City State.
With an over 500-year history, the unit, albeit small, is one of the most recognizable military units in the world. As you may expect, it draws its members from Switzerland. Most of the new recruits are young unmarried men, so a lot of them probably grew up with video games. A few of them likely decided to pass the time in between during their protectory duties by launching an adventure or two in the world of Baldur’s Gate 3.
Perhaps they’re using some of our best Baldur’s Gate 3 builds as well. Why not check them out yourself and also try them in a run?
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