Well, folks, it’s nearly time to dive into a side of Pywel we haven’t had the chance to see before as Crimson Desert brings Charting the Unknown to its shores and beyond. The expansion’s definitely been in our sights ever since we heard tell of it, and just because of how quickly it’s coming around after the base game’s release.
We’ve already told you a lot about what to expect from this one when it’s in your hands, but new information has come to light courtesy of an appearance by Will Powers, the Marketing Director of the game, on the Dropped Frames podcast. It’s given us a lot of reasons to think about how we’ve been looking at crucial parts of the expansion, and we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to tell you all about it.
Let’s get right to it!
1. More Perspective On The Story
Charting the Unknown is being written by a fresh set of eyes, according to Powers, and it’s the same writer who managed to give us a more streamlined path through a convoluted story in the base game’s Enhanced Edition. We already knew that we were going to have to finish the main campaign to get started with the DLC stories for Kliff, Damiane, and Oongka, but there’s now more context to it.
Apparently, each of them has been written to feel like a protagonist in their own right, which we suspect is a good enough reason to send one of them chasing down each of the main story beats we’ve talked about before. There’s also going to be a significant focus on their characterization, which is a good thing since that’s something the community is sure to appreciate, ourselves included.
2. Expansions To Pywel’s Existing Landmass
While the bulk of the underwater sections making their way to the game are going to be reserved for the shoreline that Pywel displays with so much pride, that doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be areas where you swim below the surface in the base game.
Powers mentioned additions to Pywel’s existing map where exploring underwater was going to be a thing, and we can’t wait to find out what’s hiding beneath the surface of Pailune’s giant lake, or around the water bodies of the map’s southern regions. There’s sure to be a cool thing or two to find, and you can bet we’re going to be holding our breath for as long as we can in our search for every secret under the surface.
3. Important NPCs Visit You From Time to Time
The new base-building and castle-building mechanics just got a nice new incentive for you to invest time into ensuring the decor is fit to entertain. Important NPCs could visit your base or camp from time to time, depending on how much you like engaging with building mechanics.
That’s a welcome change, as it can work to make your camp feel more alive instead of seeing the same old Greymanes pacing about on their business, while also allowing your camp or base to be the catalyst for new adventures or points of interest that the NPC in question might bring news of. We can’t think of a better way for the game to encourage further exploration and perhaps even weave in a few narrative beats than this interesting addition to an already solid world.
4. Some House Rules
Your houses and estates can be built from the ground up in any shape you want, letting you truly leave a stamp on the land you’re working so hard to redeem. But as far as castles are concerned, it seems that they come pre-built, with incrementally better stages that you need to unlock via Dispatch Missions.
That certainly adds some spice to building up your presence in Pywel, and we think it’s a great way to balance out new building mechanics without making it all too overwhelming and perhaps even distracting from everything else that’s about to happen. The interiors and courtyards in your castles are still open to decoration, so you can still leave your unique imprint on them once you have them.
5. A Separate Progression System For Your Ship
In what we think is a great distinction to make, your ship’s progression and upgrade systems are entirely separate from your camp resources, aside from an initial investment that you make to build your vessel in the first place. After that, upgrading your ship is going to be a whole other thing, while your camp and base upgrades can continue in parallel with your naval pursuits.
That’s a nice touch since it immediately fosters a bond between your vessel and its captain, while also ensuring that you’re incentivized to get on the deck and chart a course to whatever is in store for you on the sea. Of course, it’s also a great way to ensure you encounter another welcome addition.
6. Watch Out For The Weather
You’re going to want to keep an eye on the horizon and skies when you’re steering your ship into the unknown, as the weather can work against you if you’re not careful. Powers described “new weather systems” that come with massive waves that can come crashing down on you in storms.
Our minds immediately went back to the rogue waves in Black Flag Resynced, and we’re hoping to see Charting the Unknown give us a more impressive way to handle bad weather, preferably with something from the Abyss for us to wield. Is that expecting too much? It’s really hard to tell in a game where the possibility is never too distant.
7. Prepare For Boarding
Of course, bad weather wouldn’t make the seas as dangerous as we’re expecting, and with Powers confirming that boarding is on the table, that immediately makes the rest of what he’s said about the DLC’s naval side of things make more sense as a result. It ties in well with the progression systems, for instance, as it could mean you’re going to have to get into a few scrapes to begin upgrading your ship.
It could also mean that naval combat and bad weather have the room to coincide, which would mean an epic battle on stormy tides. It’s not too hard to imagine at least one set-piece with a maelstrom at the center of an important battle. We’ve seen that in a movie already, but it certainly would be nice to be a participant in something that epic instead of a spectator, wouldn’t it?
8. New Gear Artifacts
Powers mentioned new Abyss Gear Artifacts as the sources of new abilities instead of new skills being added to the skill tree. Considering how much each character’s skill tree has been reworked and added to over the course of this year, that’s another sensible choice that can help weave in more depth to existing systems while leaving enough room for new meta builds to surface once the DLC is out.
It preserves the base game’s emphasis on experimentation while allowing for a potentially wider selection of new moves spread across the oceans and land, which could make engaging with even the base game’s new content feel fresh all over again.
9. A Slower Update Schedule
With the Enhanced Edition already out, and Charting the Unknown now as close to its release as it is, it makes sense that the developer is going to slow down on that blistering pace of new updates that it has sustained throughout the year. The weekly updates are going to make way for a slower cadence.
However, Powers was emphatic about more free updates to hit the game from time to time, which has us thinking that they could be pointed at refinements to existing and new content based on things that crop up as more of us begin to dig into Charting the Unknown. Well, we’re happy that the game is going to stay the same long enough for us to not be tempted to start over yet again.
10. The Release Time
We know this one’s out on Thursday, but we now know that it’s coming out at 3 PM Pacific Time, so set your alarms and perhaps call in sick for the next day while you’re at it. That’s anytime between 3-6 PM on Thursday, based on your time zone, with a few exceptions.
It’s at 10 PM if you’re working with GMT, 11 PM BST, while it releases at midnight on 30 October 2026 for those of you in the CEST time zone, although regional rollouts can see it hit an hour earlier. Lastly, that release time is at 7 AM on Friday if you’re playing in Japan or Korea, and an hour later than that if you’re in Australia.
And that’s about it. It’s safe to say that the next time we meet is probably going to be on the deck of our ship or somewhere along the horizon as we return to celebrate what’s good in Charting the Unknown, and perhaps even discuss what future updates could help improve. We’re stoked, and we’re sure you are too!
