The lead designer of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, Bruce Nesmith, drew comparisons between Bethesda Games and Larian’s Baldur’s Gate 3 from a design philosophy aspect. Nesmith admires Baldur’s Gate's ability to recreate the tabletop experience in a computer game, with Dungeons & Dragons style gameplay where each decision impacts the storyline and character relationships.

Bethesda games like Starfield, on the other hand, limit the scope of choice and consequence. These games focus on exploring vast open worlds and experiencing as many side quests as possible regardless of the main storyline. Nesmith praises Larian's choice to place sections of the game out of reach based on the player’s choices, a brave move not often seen in Bethesda games.

Despite the contrast, Nesmith acknowledges their games' different design intentions, making it inappropriate to compare Baldur’s Gate 3 directly with Bethesda titles. The latter's games aim for prolonged gameplay, where players can spend hundreds of hours exploring every corner of the game world. Reducing the game's content as in Baldur’s Gate 3 would lead to a significantly reduced gameplay period.

Nesmith also added how the lack of impactful, high-stakes choices in Bethesda games as compared to Baldur’s Gate 3 is a key differentiating factor. However, the question is whether Bethesda will alter its design approach in the upcoming The Elder Scrolls 6, taking inspiration from Baldur’s Gate 3's success.