New Live Service Multiplayer D&D Game Announced by Payday Developer Starbreeze

Payday 3 studio Starbreeze has revealed Project Baxter, a brand new live-service D&D game with a focus on co-op multiplayer.


Published: December 4, 2023 11:01 AM /

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A wizard character holding a staff in Project Baxter, the new Starbreeze D&D game

Starbreeze, best known for developing co-op heist shooter Payday, has announced Project Baxter, a brand new multiplayer game based on the Dungeons & Dragons property.

In an announcement post, Starbreeze reveals that Project Baxter (which is almost certainly not the game's final name) will arrive sometime in 2026, which is a pretty long way off yet.

The game will be available for "all major platforms" that year and will be built on Unreal Engine 5, which is also being used to power games like Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater and NCSoft's Project M.

A fantasy cityscape representing Starbreeze's new multiplayer D&D game Project Baxter
Only two pieces of concept art have thus far been revealed for Project Baxter.

Starbreeze will both develop and publish Project Baxter, which the studio says will "carry the signature Starbreeze game cornerstones".

These include a focus on live service development, a core commitment to co-operative multiplayer, and "community engagement", as well as a "larger than life experience". It'll also support crossplay between platforms.

Starbreeze CEO Tobias Sjögren says Dungeons & Dragons is a good fit for his studio because both emphasize "community driven experiences, 'play it your way', and infinite replayability".

For his part, Wizards of the Coast digital strategy SVP Eugene Evans says he's confident Starbreeze will deliver "an experience that will delight [Dungeons & Dragons] fans worldwide" with Project Baxter.

Starbreeze's Dungeons & Dragons game follows on the heels of several recent video game projects to use the IP, some of which have been phenomenally successful.

The sprawling RPG Baldur's Gate 3, for instance, has been massively successful and very well-received by players and critics alike, including our very own Erren Van Duine.

Let's hope that Project Baxter lands closer to Larian's RPG in terms of quality and not closer to something like Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance, which was decidedly less successful in bringing multiplayer fun to the D&D video game world.

Since Project Baxter isn't due for another few years yet, it may be a while until we hear anything more, but we'll bring you any new info on this one as and when we get it.

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