Wizards of the Coast DMCA Strikes Fan's Baldur's Gate 3 Mod, Larian CEO Reacts

Wizards of the Coast has recently taken down a fan-created mod for Stardew Valley called "Baldur's Village," which integrated characters from Baldur's Gate 3 into the game. Despite earlier praise from Larian Studios CEO Sven Vincke, who commended the mod's creativity and effort, the mod was removed following a DMCA notice from Wizards of the Coast, the rights holder of Dungeons & Dragons and Baldur's Gate.

The mod, which was released earlier this month, quickly garnered attention, including a positive tweet from Vincke stating, "So much love went into this - amazing work!" However, the celebration was short-lived as Wizards of the Coast issued the takedown notice, leading to the mod's removal from Nexus Mods.

A spokesperson from Nexus Mods expressed hope that the takedown might be an oversight, noting that Wizards of the Coast often employs external agencies to monitor IP violations. They said, "Hopefully, this is an oversight from WotC, who often use external agencies to hunt down violating content, and they will revert their decision. Fingers crossed for Baldur's Village."

In response to the situation, Vincke took to Twitter again, expressing his continued support for the mod while acknowledging the complexities of IP protection. He stated, "Protecting your IP can be tricky but I do hope this gets settled. There are good ways of dealing with this." He further emphasized the value of fan mods, saying, "Free quality fan mods highlighting your characters in other game genres are proof your work resonates and a unique form of word of mouth. Imho they shouldn't be treated like commercial ventures that infringe on your property."

The takedown could be part of a broader strategy by Wizards of the Coast concerning the Baldur's Gate IP. Recent announcements at the Game Developers Conference hinted at upcoming plans for the IP, suggesting that the mod might have conflicted with these initiatives. Alternatively, it could be an error that Wizards of the Coast may soon correct. [ttpp] has reached out to Wizards of the Coast for further comment on the matter.