Astarion actor set up a "support group" for his Baldur's Gate 3 co-stars because of his experiences with Resident Evil and Detroit: Become Human

Nov. 1, 2023

The actor behind the fan-favorite vampire thief explains how the popularity of the character has affected him, and why Astarion is so well-loved

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“We have a companion character support group on Whatsapp,” said Newbon to The Gamer. “I think I created that a couple of days before release because I kinda knew what was going to happen. In a way. I didn’t know it was going to be this big, but I knew it was going to be interesting because I’ve been involved with Resident Evil and Detroit: Become Human, so I’ve seen how big these things can become.“While characters like Karlach and Gale are popular with fans, Astarion has especially been embraced by BG3 players, so much so that Neil Newbon was surprised by how much fans embraced the character.“I thought the character would be well received, but not in the same scale he’s taken off,” Newbon said. “I really enjoy meeting people who play the game, and I’m lucky in that I do conventions, online stuff, and I stream as well, so it’s really nice to hear people’s stories about their version of the game because it can go a multitude of infinitely different ways.“Previously, Newbon has worked on games such as Resident Evil Village and Detroit: Become Human, where he played Heisenberg and Elijah Kamski, respectively. However, he has stated that Astarion is by far his most famous character.Newbon took time to explain his view on why Astarion was such a fan-favorite, and he credits the character’s open and welcoming nature that has endeared the character to fans in light of growing conflicts and depressing news in today’s age. He gave a special shout to LGBTQ+ fans who gave him praise for his portrayal of Astarion.“He’s attracted to anybody that he’s attracted to, and he loves anybody that he will love. I think that’s a beautiful message, especially these days when we’ve seen great strides in the LGBTQ+ community but also seen this unfortunate right-wing sweep back against us, especially in America, where we’ve seen horrendous laws come into effect. It’s important to keep pushing the message forward that you should love who you want to love, and that shouldn’t be an issue, and nobody should judge you for it.“In ourBaldur’s Gate 3 review, Ali Jones awarded the game five stars and stated that Baldur’s Gate 3 sets “a new gold standard for RPGs”, elaborating further that: “At a time when Dungeons & Dragons boasts a popularity unknown at any other time in its 50-year history, Baldur’s Gate 3 will stand alongside the best of the best; with Curse of Strahd, Critical Role, and its own beloved predecessors. By any metric, it’s not just one of the best D&D games orbest RPGsever made – it’s a new gold standard by which the entire genre, if not an entire industry, will be measured.“For more role-playing games to dive into, check out our roundup ofthe 25 best RPGsyou can play right now.

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Alessandro is a freelance writer and editor based in the San Francisco Bay Area who has covered the games, tech, and entertainment industries for more than 13 years. Having previously worked at GameSpot, CNET, and various other outlets writing features and coordinating event coverage, Alessandro enjoys playing games on PC, but also gives plenty of time to his Nintendo Switch. You can find him on various socials at @afillari.

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