Stranger Things co-creator Matt Duffer revealed the Season 5 finale's climactic battle drew direct inspiration from Baldur's Gate 3. The Duffer Brothers confirmed the influence in a Variety interview published this week.
Matt Duffer was playing Larian Studios' acclaimed RPG while developing the final season's showdown. He told Variety the party-based teamwork mechanics from Baldur's Gate 3 shaped how the Hawkins crew confronts Vecna and the Mind Flayer.
"We were thinking about D&D and I was playing Baldur's Gate 3 at the time," Duffer said. "We felt it was very important that the only way for them to defeat it was for the entire party to work together."
The 2-hour, 8-minute finale episode, titled "The Rightside Up," premiered on Netflix on December 31, 2025, with screenings continuing through January 1, 2026. It features the entire cast battling a colossal spider-like manifestation of the Mind Flayer in the Abyss dimension.
Each character brings specialized skills to the coordinated assault, mirroring Baldur's Gate 3's companion system. Eleven uses telekinetic powers to carve a path inside the monster while others attack with firearms, Molotov cocktails, and melee weapons.
"Everyone had fully realized moving into that final battle, they're absolutely primed," Duffer explained. "They're the ultimate team, and it's the party working all together to defeat this thing."
Larian Studios CEO Swen Vincke responded to the revelation on social media, calling it "pretty cool." The studio's publishing director Michael Douse added, "Damn now I really should watch Stranger Things..."
The connection makes structural sense since both properties draw from Dungeons & Dragons mythology. Stranger Things characters have referenced D&D monsters like Demogorgons and Mind Flayers throughout the series.
Baldur's Gate 3 features actual Mind Flayers as central antagonists, though the Netflix show uses the creature more metaphorically. Both narratives require coordinated party efforts to overcome seemingly unstoppable supernatural threats.
This marks the latest video game influence on Stranger Things' final season. The Duffer Brothers previously cited Resident Evil, Silent Hill, and Metal Gear Solid as inspirations for Season 5's tone and pacing.
The series concluded its nine-year run with the December 31, 2025 finale after five seasons. Minecraft launched a Stranger Things DLC expansion earlier this month to commemorate the show's ending.
Some fans speculate about a potential secret ninth episode, though Netflix hasn't confirmed additional content. The streaming service has announced a live-action spinoff is in development.
