If the news of yet another delay hitting Crimson Desert has left you, well, crimson, you’re not alone. The open-world adventure has been a long time in the making, managing to gain a lot of attention in the wake of its presence at Gamescom 2024 and some showcases that bring a lot of cool ideas to the table.
While originally slated for release in the second half of 2025, the latest delay might have many players wondering if they are ever going to get to dive into Kilff’s time in a fantasy world full of mysteries and secrets just waiting for him to discover.
However, recent statements about the game, made during an earnings call, could very well be a valuable source of insights into where the game is at currently, and also help figure out if it’s finally on track to be released next year.
So what’s really going on with Crimson Desert?
Magic, Melee, and More
The anticipation around Crimson Desert is understandable. The lofty vision for an open world that reacts to your actions might not be groundbreaking in the face of several other titles that promise a similar experience and a few that indeed deliver on that promise.
However, the sheer beauty of the game works very well with the mechanics and systems governing Kliff’s adventures. The story that it aims to tell is nothing to be scoffed at, either. Bringing magical abilities, excellent melee combat, and a world that begs to be explored, it could be right up there with the best action-RPGs in modern gaming.
Early hands-on previews, mainly at Gamescom 2024 suggested that the game was a blend of modern adventure games with its combat system drawing a lot of praise for the manner in which it used a controller’s face buttons to give Kliff a lot of options when facing down an enemy or one of the game’s well-designed bosses. But a lot of the discourse around it pointed to a need for further polishing, something that the developers were quick to acknowledge.
Gameplay footage from Summer Games Fest 2025 showcased even more of the game’s flashy combat and the integration of magical attacks that could turn the tide of a fight in a matter of seconds. It also pointed towards an experience that seemed polished and well-implemented, with Kliff seamlessly flowing from one animation to the next while the world around him bristled with activity, simulating a battlefield quite effectively in the process.
Official gameplay footage released on the game’s YouTube channel made us quite optimistic about the story on offer, with new content constantly finding its way to players even as Kliff’s story unfolded at a brisk pace as he explored the world. It’s a land that is begging to be explored, boasting of a draw distance that’s right up there with the best of current-gen titles.
It’s clear that Crimson Desert has been coming along quite nicely. So what explains the most recent delay in its release?
A Long and Winding Road
First announced in December 2020, the response to Crimson Desert’s release trailer was quite enthusiastic. It was originally intended to be released in 2021, but an announcement from the developers put a damper on the anticipation it had garnered, marking the first delay in its development cycle.
With a new release window planned for late 2023, it seemed that things were looking up for fans of Crimson Desert, and the game received a new gameplay trailer at Gamescom 2023. While it was expected to launch in the first half of 2024, another delay extended the already long wait, bringing us to where we currently stand with yet another extension of its release window.
Crimson Desert has drawn the ire of fans and critics alike due to its repeated delays, with many reports pointing to poor communication and leaving audiences wondering if the ambitious title was languishing in development hell.
However, that’s not the case if the recent footage of the kind of experience Crimson Desert is primed to offer is any indication. Could this latest delay be an indication of good things to come for the game and its fans?
Do Good Things Come To Those Who Wait?
While there is bound to be disappointment surrounding the game’s latest announcement, it does bring a few interesting points to the surface.
First of all, it showcases the game’s willingness to learn from its past mistakes when one considers how it the statement regarding the new release window was framed.
By clearly stating that the game has been delayed due to “longer than expected timelines arising from schedule coordination and collaborations with multiple partners for offline distribution, voice-overs, console certification, and other launch preparations”, and clearly following up that announcement with a roadmap of appearances at major gaming events later this year, Crimson Desert is getting in front of the problem as opposed to more measured approach in the past.
Largely speaking, that’s quite a good sign that Crimson Desert is a title that has the confidence and backing of its fans. But it also points to a title that’s quite far into its development, considering that it is now sorting out voice-overs, and that the most recent delays have come from issues surrounding its distribution and supply chains rather than more developmental work to be done.
That news indicates a game that is more or less ready to be launched, and that it is simply taking the extra time to ensure a smooth launch and a solid reception to Crimson Desert right off the bat. It could also be safe to guess that the game will use the extra time to do some more fine-tuning and ensure that the experience it offers on release is the one that we’ve been waiting for all these long years.
Secondly, assurances that the game was going to be showcased at Gamescom 2025, PAX West, and the Tokyo Games Show is an indication that the game feels enthusiastic about bringing Kliff’s story to its intended audiences as soon as it can manage. Perhaps these showcases are a way of generating further hype for Crimson Desert, a sort of buildup that could be very well rewarded when the game finally hits the shelves in 2026.
Third, it’s going to be interesting to see the price point that is chosen for Crimson Desert. We can’t help but wonder if the game is going to look at the $50 USD price point that has been so attractive to several other developers this year, with so many releases that deliver outstanding value at that price.
Could Crimson Desert become even more irresistible by pricing it so competitively? Considering that it now finds itself competing with Rockstar’s GTA 6, which has also seen a delay that pushed it from 2025 to next year, that could be a good idea.
It would allow the gae to gain a slight edge, given that it is also a massive open-world that is likely to keep its players hunting down all of its secrets for hours on end while they enjoy its well-designed combat loop and gameplay elements. It would certainly be a factor in many a purchase decision, considering that GTA 6 is highly unlikely to release with a similar price tag.
The Final Leg Of A Long Journey
We believe that delaying Crimson Desert is a right call. If you’ve been with us for a while, you certainly know our take on games that were rushed out to players only to prove disappointing experiences that could have used more time in development (we’re looking at you, MindsEye).
We would much rather wait a few more months for Crimson Desert with the fond hope that it lives up to our very high expectations. It’s going to be quite interesting to see more of its gameplay when it makes its scheduled appearances at this year’s biggest gaming events.
But if its previous showcases are an indication of its quality, Crimson Desert’s latest delay is less of a setback and more of a great thing, depending on how you look at it. If you’ve been eager to dive into Kliff’s story and discover what makes him tick, it’s going to be a long few months.
But if you want that adventure to be the best it possibly can, the time is simply going to fly by even as the game dishes out more details about the experience in the interim.
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.