Some of Baldur's Gate 3's evil endings are so vile that they're hard for you to watch. There's a different variation for each character's origin.

If you're like me, the news that Baldur's Gate 3 has expanded evil endings as part of the mammoth Patch 7 was met with "Oh, this sounds interesting, but I can't stomach unlocking them." These bad boys are available on YouTube, and they are well worth watching, even if you just want to add some weight to your "canon", happy ending. Spoilers for Patch 7's endings.

The game ends with a binary choice: either destroy or enslave the mind flayer superberain The Absolute. The new endings are all based on the latter option. There are tons of ways to play it out. Your character can achieve the ending as a Mind Flayer or not and with or without support from the Emperor. If the Emperor is still around, your character can either betray him in the last moment, or play second fiddle.

The possibility of becoming an illithid without your consent after taking control of the absolute was a surprise. You must pass a Constitution Check based on the number of mind flayers you ate during the game. Failure will cause you to graphically undergo a ceremorphosis, and you'll get a unique ending in which the "Grand Design" of the illithid begins.

If you pass the check, however, you will get a fun option to "exercise" your will, directing the newly enslaved Baldur's gate people towards a selection evil guy activities with a unique scene for each. The evil scenes include the following:

• Sending your cultists to conquest.
• Build a giant statue that represents your avatar as the "hero of the World."
• Killing everyone around Baldur's gate.
• Have everyone go berserk, Kingsman style.
• Unique option for each origin character.

The last option, which is particularly sick and didn't appear to be available during Patch 7 playtests, is particularly sick. Each origin ending feels like a believable and satisfying conclusion to each character's arc, which is no mean feat considering BG3's large cast. Karlach, preserved by Absolute's magical power, tears out her failing machine-heart before the sickening devils in the town. Lae'zel, aided by an older brain, begins her war against Vlaakith while Astarion declares himself to be a "sun God" loved by all.

The Dark Urge is the most unique ending. If you are a good little Murder Lord blessed by Bhaal then taking control of the Absolute will lead to a custom cutscene in which the Durge use their power to murder everyone in the city starting with their love interest. Then they see the lifeless world that they will create, where the only thing left alive is themselves in a pool of corpses and a darkened sky.

Even though Larian has a few smaller updates planned, it feels like a fitting end to Baldur's Gate 3. I imagine that the new endings are at least as expensive and effort-intensive as the happy epilogue party. Larian's willingness to spend so much on endings that only a small minority of players have chosen is a testament to the studio's skill. It caps off a game of "I couldn't believe there was a special cutscene" for an insane edge-case decision I made.

Even if you don't use these new endings, they add a lot of depth and stakes into the story. The feeling of accomplishment at the end a good-guy run feels genuinely hard won when there are so many shocking and gruesome alternative endings to contrast with.