Lae’zel’s actor shows why Baldur’s Gate 3 has a new rival in Solasta 2

Solasta 2 arrives in early access this March, and new promotional videos featuring its star-studded cast have highlighted the immense amount of detail players can expect from the game. Solasta 2 actors Ben Starr (Verso in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33) and Devora Wilde (Lae’zel in Baldur’s Gate 3) tried out the upcoming tactical RPG’s character creator, showcasing the vast — and very silly — ways players can customize their characters.

Starr and Wilde play siblings Rickard and Deorcas Colwall, who will serve as major supporting characters to the player’s customizable party of four. Just as its predecessor, Solasta 2 faithfully utilizes the tabletop combat mechanics of Dungeons & Dragons, though this time around it will use the 2024 ruleset, an update of 5th Edition. Players will be able to choose between six different classes when designing their party, intricately customizing not only their looks but their stats as well. Solasta 2 will enter early access on March 12.

In the recent video from developer Tactical Adventures, Starr and Wilde are tasked with designing characters for one another, with a few caveats. Since Wilde always plays strong and intimidating characters, for example, Starr had to reimagine her character this time as something smaller and gentler. The pair had a great deal of fun with the ridiculous options they were able to explore with the creator, like Wilde moving Starr’s eyebrows all over the place, and Starr making Wilde’s character an outlandish yellow color and joking that she looks “radioactive.”

The initial challenge description given to Starr and Wilde notes that the character creator has been “massively expanded,” and its features are further outlined in another video that demonstrates immense customization for both a character’s stats and appearance. One of the most significant mechanics the duo explores is shape blending, which allows players to select different head shape presets and blend them together for a more unique look; notably, Baldur’s Gate 3 had no real face slider options, relying entirely on presets.

Character creation isn’t the only place developers have aimed to improve Solasta 2, either. Another video with Starr and Wilde highlights five big changes the team is proud of: the game’s cast (which, alongside Wilde and Starr, features names like Amelia Tyler, the narrator of Baldur’s Gate 3), its improved graphics, its usage of the 2024 ruleset, the scope of the explorable world, and how the player character is deeply embedded within the narrative of Solasta 2. With so much detail in just the early access version, it seems like Solasta 2 could potentially come for Baldur’s Gate 3‘s crown — at least when it comes to customization.