Image credit: Pearl Abyss
It’s been a while since Crimson Desert was announced back in 2019. The ambitious game seemed too good to be true then, and even now, so close to release, that sentiment remains the same. Thankfully, developer Pearl Abyss has released several videos showcasing the game, its mechanics, and its action-adventure gameplay loop.
Crimson Desert is a high-fantasy single-player title that, surprisingly, is not a pure RPG. The game has heavy RPG elements, but doesn’t have much roleplay from what I’ve seen. With no character levelling or branching narrative, Crimson Desert takes you on a curated but seemingly fun ride.
Despite its high fantasy setting, the game offers some truly wacky ways to enjoy your time in Pywel. Here are a few things in Crimson Desert that’ll make anyone go “what”.
Robots, dragons, and robot-dragons
Crimson Desert is not shying away from out-of-the-box enemies and boss mechanics. Sure, dragons are usually seen in a fantasy adventure game, but this one has robot dragons, too. The preview showcases a large mechanical dragon boss with unique attacks that players must fight.
While the bosses are not as huge as Shadow of Colossus, they are at least large enough to mount and damage. A good mix of Monster Hunter and Dragon’s Dogma? I think I can roll with that. Pearl Abyss also showcased a massive rock turtle boss that you have to take down using unique mechanics. I love it when we have to think a little during a boss fight instead of brute-forcing it to death.
Despite the high-fantasy setting, there are Dwarven Automaton Robots. Players will be able to at least pilot one mech. You can zip around the battlefield, shooting bullets and missiles at enemies with the robot mech. It looks jarring in a fantasy setting, but it seems a lot of fun.
Is this Spider-Man?
Kliff, the main protagonist in Crimson Desert, has plenty of tools for traversal and combat. One of which is a glowing string-grapple thing that lets him swing around like Spider-Man. You can swing around levels or even enemies. Kliff can pull off sick moves after gaining momentum from the spider-string.
There’s also a wraith-like cloak that lets Kliff glide through the air. It looks like a cloak infused with Venom from Spider-Man. The tentacle-like material makes it look alive. The game has plenty of aerial enemies, including a gunship and a big serpent, so flying/gliding are essential mechanics.
Speaking of flying, you can mount and fly a dragon across the game. Pywel is a huge place, making fast traversal a must-have. It takes around 2 real-life hours to ride a horse from one side of the map to the other. Crimson Desert’s Director of Marketing, Will Powers, explains that we’ve only seen a small portion of the seamless open world.
There’s some WWE in my combat
Crimson Desert has a huge focus on combat. Players can wield multiple weapons, use flashy combos, and even do magic. However, nothing beats a pure flying kick to the enemy’s face. Surprisingly, there are a ton of wrestling moves Kliff can do during combat. Chokeslams, grapples, and suplexes are there, but players can also do Diamond Cutter, Flying Head Scissors, and Giant Swings.
What if you want to ride a huge bear into combat? Crimson Desert says, yes, you can. The bear attacks enemies while Kliff takes simultaneous swings at them. Crimson Desert has swords and shields, greatswords, axes, dual blades, spears, bows, and muskets. We’ve seen Kliff use Sword and Shield and switch to another weapon mid-fight.
Oh, there are two whole other characters you can use in the game. Damiane is an agile fighter focusing on ranged combat. Oongka is an Orc with brutish strength in his moves. Both Damiane and Oongka have unique fighting mechanics, but the story focuses on Kliff.
The ranged combat slows down time so you can land your arrows with precision. The bullet-time mechanic is also used in other games like Horizon Zero Dawn, and it works well. You can also imbue weapons with magical elements like fire, ice, and lightning. Kliff has magical abilities such as wind-blasting spears and Teleknisis.
What more wacky secrets are hiding in Crimson Desert? We’ll know for sure when the game launches on March 19, 2026.
FAQs
Crimson Desert is confirmed to be a single-player open-world game.
No. Crimson Desert was originally a prequel to Black Desert Online, but it has since become its own standalone release.
Yes. The game is AAA due to its premium price tag of $69.99 / £54.99.
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