You Won’t Believe the Beloved D&D RPG That Almost Got a Sequel and Then Vanished

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Summary

  • Former Dragon Age writer reveals Beamdog planned a sequel for Planescape: Torment, but it never took off due to a lack of funding.
  • Planescape: Unraveled was to explore the mystery of one’s existence through one of three aspects of Ravel Puzzlewell.
  • Wizards of the Coast was excited about the sequel but couldn’t provide financial backing.

Previously employed writer from the “Dragon Age” series, David Gaider, has disclosed that game publisher Beamdog had once endeavored to create a sequel for an adored “Dungeons & Dragons” game from the 90s. Regrettably, this successor never saw the light of day due to a significant hurdle. Now as co-founder and creative director at Summerfall Studios, Gaider is opening up about the unrealized Dungeons & Dragons RPG sequel.

In 2009, I, along with Trent Oster (a co-founder of BioWare) and Cameron Tofer (former lead programmer at BioWare), founded Beamdog. Fast forward to 2022, we were delighted to join forces with Aspyr Media, under the Embracer Group. For all you Dungeons & Dragons enthusiasts out there, it’s worth noting that our team has been responsible for publishing several Baldur’s Gate games throughout the years. This includes the enhanced versions of both the original 1998 Baldur’s Gate game and its sequel, as well as 2016’s Siege of Dragonspear.

In a conversation on Bluesky, Gaider disclosed that Beamdog was intending to develop a sequel for the 1999 game, “Planescape: Torment,” but the project ultimately failed due to insufficient funding. Notably, “Planescape: Torment” is renowned as one of the most intricate games based on “Dungeons and Dragons,” along with “Solasta: Crown Of The Magister,” “Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition” (also published by Beamdog), and “The Temple Of Elemental Evil.” Previously, Beamdog had released the enhanced version of “Planescape: Torment” in 2017. Gaider mentioned that if the sequel had gone ahead, it would have been called “Planescape: Unraveled,” where players would embark on a journey to uncover the enigma of their own existence by assuming one of three characters of Ravel Puzzlewell.

Planescape: Torment Nearly Got a Sequel From Beamdog

After all, making a sequel to one of the most beloved Infinity Engine titles? In the Planescape setting, which I adored, and which gave license to break all the “standard” rules of CRPG’s? Yes, please! Under that premise, I warily agreed – and by March of 2016 I was Beamdog’s new Creative Director. — David Gaider (@davidgaider.bsky.social) 2025-04-15T01:49:29.481Z

Originating from the team behind BioWare’s Dragon Age series, Wizards of the Coast (WOTC) has recently recruited Corinne Busche, former director of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, for a top-secret project at Skeleton Key studio. Interestingly, WOTC was also involved in the development of the sequel to Planescape, which they expedited due to their enthusiasm and even included some characters and significant events from it. However, the sequel faced funding issues as WOTC could only provide approval for the project, not financial backing, and other publishers were reluctant to invest in a successor because Planescape did not achieve commercial success. Gaider mentioned that there might have been a lack of confidence in Beamdog or himself, but ultimately they couldn’t sell the idea.

At the main office of Dungeons and Dragons, a few significant modifications have taken place. Notably, the creative director, who has been with D&D for 28 years, is retiring and hanging up their superhero cape. Similarly, after 18 years of dedicated service, the game director of Dungeons and Dragons has also decided to leave. Fortunately, these departures are not anticipated to disrupt the game’s planned release schedule.

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2025-04-16 12:49