Baldur's Gate III: The Black Hound tipped

A countdown meter reading less than 24 hours now sits on the original Baldur's Gate website, the launchpad for the epic 2 and soon to be 3-part digital Role Playing Game series set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons. This entry in the series was originally slated to be developed and released in 2002, but was cancelled in 2003 when the 3D Engine developed specifically for the game was used for Black Isle Studios Van Buren, also known as Fallout 3. Fast forward to 2012 and the Forgotten Realms-set RPG is being whispered as having new life in the form of an actual release of The Black Hound, better known as Baldur's Gate III.

The development group by the name of GameBanshee is being tipped as working on this new release, it created originally by former BioWare developer Trent Oster. This fellow is also known for his work on Neverwinter Nights, Dragon Age, and more. Oster has been "confirmed" to be sending out an announcement soon on the release of an entirely original game – this perhaps meaning this edition of Baldur's Gate will not be the setup being worked on in 2003, but a whole new bag being opened for this futuristic world we're in now.

The same page being used for the countdown meter for the announcement we're ever so pumped up about today also contains some rather cryptic text which leads one to believe that the game will be a remake of the original Baldur's Gate – whatever works!

– February 28, 2012 –

– Shadowy Figure- Raise Dead : Infinity Engine –

– For years, I clung to the memory of it. Then the memory of the memory. –

– And then... it returned. Better than it was before. –

– Pore over the tapestries and works of art hanging from our walls if you wish, Child of Bhaal... perhaps you will find a clue. But patience, ah... patience would reveal it all. –

The rights to Baldur's Gate belong to Atari at the moment, and as mentioned in the Beamdog forums for game sales and distribution, it might be a bit unlikely that they'd distribute these rights to a company smaller than the biggest they could find. That said, the biggest clue that ties Oster and Baldur's gate together is a Twitter update made by Oster last night. This update read as follows:

Forgot to mention awesome meeting yesterday with the #WizardsoftheCoast guys. Great talking #d&d with them.

Of course Wizards of the Coast are makers of Dungeons & Dragons RPG books and storytelling dice-rolling games and card games, so we must assume that this meeting had something to do with the furthering of the franchise in one way or another. Will this new game revolve around a physical element as well like the most classic iteration of the legacy? We shall see!

We'll be following this story closely as Baldur's Gate holds a soft spot in the hearts of not only those who played either of the first two installments, but in the minds of those playing roll playing games and massively multiplayer online roll playing games as well – all of these games stemming from the same roots in the end. Let the wars continue!

[via AusGamers]