Is there any way to pause the game?

[Angelus BR]

I tried to open the menu screen to pause to do other stuff, but when I returned, the cutscene finished playing. Why does the game in offline mode doesn't have a pause buttom?

[Metallicus]

Because a turn based game doesn’t need to pause, however, just enter turn-based mode if you really want to pause the game.

[Choowkee]

shift+space

[lefty1117]

There are occasionally times when you come out of combat and someone has a condition like poison or something where if you dont' act quickly they could die. It's in those cases where I wish I could hit spacebar to pause so I can get thru the menus to find what I need to address the situation. I suppose going to turn-based mode would do the trick.

[Lans]

Originally posted by Metallicus:

Because a turn based game doesn’t need to pause, however, just enter turn-based mode if you really want to pause the game.

I don't know when this became a thing. Final Fantasy is turn based and it has a pause button.

Even some multiplayer games have pause buttons where each user consents to unpause the game and continue when ready

It would be nice to pause the game and go do real life stuff without F5/quit to stop time where I'm at

[EricHVela]

Pausing during cutscenes is found only in some games with many not letting the player do anything but watch it play out. While I sometimes would like the option, it's not in BG3.

There is the confusion of pulling up a menu which is an indication of pausing the game in many other games that let the players pause cutscenes. Just understand that this is one of the games that doesn't pause a cutscene (even if you pull up the menu).

[Lans]

Originally posted by EricHVela:

Pausing during cutscenes is found only in some games with many not letting the player do anything but watch it play out. While I sometimes would like the option, it's not in BG3.

There is the confusion of pulling up a menu which is an indication of pausing the game in many other games that let the players pause cutscenes. Just understand that this is one of the games that doesn't pause a cutscene (even if you pull up the menu).

I don't think most people asking for the ability to pause the game are for the cutscenes

Entering turn based mode also doesn't pause the game. Critters and enemies can still move freely that aren't actively engaged with you in combat.

When I engaged the Hag, her redcaps all ran at full speed from their starting location to her front door and engaged me in combat, all while I was "paused" in turn based mode.

When I attacked the first set of goblins at the gate of the grove encampment, my paladin was separated from the group via "G". I selected her during a goblins turn, ran all the way up to the enemy front lines unimpeded, and got a surprise initiative attack on goblins the rest of my team was actively engaging - none of it happened during my "turn"

Turn based combat doesn't pause game. Equipment menu doesn't pause game. Esc menu doesn't pause game. Nothing pauses the game.

I don't know why the hive mind here keeps telling us to enter turn based mode to pause the game

[qOoOp]

Originally posted by Lans:

Originally posted by EricHVela:

P
...
I don't think anyone is asking for paused cutscenes
...

Why not?

[Angelus BR]

Originally posted by Metallicus:

Because a turn based game doesn’t need to pause, however, just enter turn-based mode if you really want to pause the game.

I would like to pause cutscenes in case something happens, though

[desrtfox071]

Originally posted by Lans:

Originally posted by Metallicus:

Because a turn based game doesn’t need to pause, however, just enter turn-based mode if you really want to pause the game.

I don't know when this became a thing. Final Fantasy is turn based and it has a pause button.

Even some multiplayer games have pause buttons where each user consents to unpause the game and continue when ready

It would be nice to pause the game and go do real life stuff without F5/quit to stop time where I'm at

You can do this. Hit the big hourglass to go into turn based mode.

[Benjamin Proverb Test]

Originally posted by desrtfox071:

You can do this. Hit the big hourglass to go into turn based mode.

turn based mode doesn't pause the game. Like if you have a split party and/or characters in who are hiding.. Also all the NPCs outside the combat bubble will continue to do real time stuff. Like run towards you if an alarm was sounded, wonder around on patrol, kill NPCs that are vital to quests

I am really wondering how they made a game that has no way for the player to pause it

[desrtfox071]

Originally posted by Benjamin Proverb Test:

Originally posted by desrtfox071:

You can do this. Hit the big hourglass to go into turn based mode.

turn based mode doesn't pause the game. Like if you have a split party and/or characters in who are hiding.. Also all the NPCs outside the combat bubble will continue to do real time stuff. Like run towards you if an alarm was sounded, wonder around on patrol, kill NPCs that are vital to quests

I am really wondering how they made a game that has no way for the player to pause it

Hit the big hour glass on your other party members as well.

Also, it will stop nearby NPCs as well.
Lastly, you can fast travel to camp from most places which effectively pauses the rest of the world as well.

[Kryo]

All I see are "hit the mode that isn't pausing the game, and acts nothing like a pause button would".

The hive mind is indeed strong, and very stupid.

[Noctoculus]

The game doesn't even pause when you hit ESC. It's weird.

[ubreitfeld]

A game without a pause function is a NoGo for me. I just gave ist back.

[Pliny The Welder]

Originally posted by Kryogenesis:

All I see are "hit the mode that isn't pausing the game, and acts nothing like a pause button would".

The hive mind is indeed strong, and very stupid.

Yes it's quite amazing that people are actually defending this as if it hasn't been a standard feature for.... i guess... 35 years? Turn based mode isn't a pause button. What possible reason can there be for ESC to not pause the game? It's literally mind blowing.

There are very very few games that don't pause on esc. Souls games because of invasions. MP PVP games because obviously, awful Steam asset flips because incompetence.

There's, quite literally, no reason or design principle for not allowing esc to pause the game in single player. The percentage of people playing this thing in co-op is going to be absurdly negligible. So small it's almost a pointless feature.