Larian’s Lead Developer Highlights RAM Shortage Impacting Divinity’s Development, Emphasizing Unplanned Optimization Efforts in Early Access

As Larian Studios continues its work on the new Divinity game, CEO Swen Vincke has shared that the recent RAM shortage and its rising costs could pose challenges for the development of their upcoming title.

In a recent interview, Vincke highlighted that the ongoing RAM shortage, largely driven by the demands of AI model training, is impacting not just gamers but developers as well. “Interestingly, another issue Larian is facing is really the price of RAM and the price of SSDs, and man – it’s like, literally, we’ve never had it like this,” he stated.

He elaborated on how these supply issues and increased costs disrupt Larian’s planning. “It kind of ruins all of your projections that you had about it because normally, you know the curves and you can protect the hardware. It’s gonna be an interesting one. It means that most likely, we already need to do a lot of optimization work in early access that we didn’t necessarily want to do at that point in time. So it’s challenging, but it’s video games.”

This situation is particularly relevant considering Vincke’s indication that Divinity will likely enter early access first, similar to Baldur’s Gate 3 and previous titles in the RPG series. He noted that while early access “causes extra development effort, it leads to a better game, which is ultimately the goal of the entire exercise.” Unfortunately, the RAM situation seems poised to add to this “extra development effort.”

Here’s hoping it doesn’t create too many obstacles. With the ongoing discussions about the use of generative AI at Larian, following Vincke’s acknowledgment that the technology is utilized in the very early stages of game development, it appears the studio is navigating a few rough waters. Only time will reveal how the RAM shortage will play out.

In the meantime, anticipation is building for any announcements regarding a significant release date for Divinity. Since its reveal at The Game Awards 2025, details have been sparse, and fans are eager for more information about what promises to be a monumental title.

Baldur’s Gate 3 director mentioned that “a lot has become lost in translation” since the announcement of Divinity and the subsequent AI controversy, adding, “It would be irresponsible for us not to evaluate new technologies.”