You know, when that Dev Update article went live, outlining all the cool things coming to Crimson Desert, I thought it was a sign that the team was slowing down. Which is all well enough, because why not take a breather after three big patches, back to back to back in as many weeks, to focus on bigger things? But lo and behold, here we are. Another week, another patch, and way more than we bargained for.
Because this patch doesn’t contain recently announced features, it also includes several that no one expected. Such is the development team, and all, but what are some of the biggest new additions? Let’s dive into them, starting with…
Weapon Display
Following up on Headgear Visibility, you can now toggle the display of weapons, both melee and ranged, by going into the Settings, then the Others tab and navigating to Language and Gameplay. And the best part is that you can either toggle visibility for all melee weapons or a select few. A great option for all those thumbnails telling everyone how to get Darkbringer, but without having to unequip your swords, shields, axes and other assorted weaponry. Speaking of which, you can also set ranged weapons to either always show or only appear when used, which makes sense because an invisible bow would be a little too trippy for our taste.
Fast Forward Some More
That bug for fast-forwarding through certain regular dialogue interactions by activating Focus was so good that the developer decided to add it for real. It’s also now applicable to all standard dialogue scenes that don’t have letterboxing. Random Hernand peasant going on and on about something that Kliff is just going to reply “Alright” to, free will be damned? Now you can speed things up to get to the fetch questing/killing all the faster. And while it still hasn’t added an option to skip cutscenes entirely – which would be a boon and a half during boss fights – you can now adjust the speed to 4x.
Targeting Improvements
With such slick combat and so much potential for different combos, it’s a real buzz kill when having to deal with the camera, especially when targeting breaks on more than one occasion. Now, once you’ve activated hard lock-on, it will stay consistent across further distances rather than forcing you to get up close again and risk your life. It also no longer applies to larger bosses, meaning you can have a better field of view while fighting.
More Fast Travel Opportunities
Remember about a month ago when the slightest movement meant that you couldn’t fast travel? It eventually changed, but this felt like a band-aid considering all the other occasions where it was impossible. Thankfully, that’s no longer the case. Whether you’re on a mount, careening through the countryside, falling from the Abyss and wondering how life led you so far astray, climbing walls or swimming, you can now fast travel. It even activates while jumping, either on foot or horseback.
Focused Aerial Roll
At one point, you could glide, activate Focus and after traveling some distance, hit Unleash for a sick burst of speed. That was removed with the last patch, but since players enjoyed it, the development team added something even better – Focused Aerial Roll. When activating Focus while gliding, tap the dodge button. It may not seem like much, but if you keep tapping it after that, you’ll dash even further in mid-air. A hefty amount of Spirit is required for that burst of flying speed, but the upside is that it doesn’t consume much Stamina. Once again, another fine addition based on a bug that players already enjoyed but made even better.
More Skills for Damiane and Oongka
I’ve already covered in exhaustive detail how annoying it is to play with Damiane and Oongka, especially when the world’s enemies start thinning out. While the latter will be addressed in the future, both characters received a slight upgrade with this patch. They can now use Axiom Force and Nature’s Snare alongside their connected upgrades. So if you’re facing trouble with dozens of projectiles when playing as either character, Nature’s Snare will go a long way. While gliding/flying around, you can now use Axiom Force to grapple onto buildings and pull yourself towards them. Better yet, grapple fools and pull them towards you to then clothesline them into the dirt. Shield Toss and Scatter Shot have also improved to have the same effect as Force Palm, pushing enemies away and even breaking walls.
Intel Arc GPU Support
When Crimson Desert first launched, Intel Arc GPU users were disappointed in the lack of support, especially since it was never clarified. From advising them to refund the game to amending the FAQ to bafflingly state that it’s live, and then changing it again to confirm it’s in the works, proper support is finally available. You can also leverage Intel XeSS 3.0 and Frame Generation, though using either on Arc A-Series GPUs won’t deliver the best results. The developer said performance will improve over time, but for now, it’s a strong first step.
World Map Improvements
Have you ever wished that the World Map would more easily convey which caves were visited or treasure chests were looted? They now have separate icons so you can quickly tell at a glance which also applies to any restored and unrestored Abyss areas. Faction Quest icons now have different colors, making them easier to discern as well. These are far from the only UI improvements, especially when it comes to…
Minimum Font Size and Camera Options
Finally, a minimum font size option that lets you increase the size up to 24, making for much easier reading on large TVs. There are also several options for customizing the camera, including visual range, vertical and horizontal offsets, auto-follow and lookahead. The offset functions are especially useful because you can now properly center the camera or go for a closer, over-the-shoulder view. Who knew that a change of perspective could make such a big difference?
All the Rest
Of course, it should be obvious by now that everything we’ve discussed isn’t truly everything. So what else can you expect? There’s a new track in the loading screen and three new songs for whenever you engage in combat (except in the Crimson Desert and other specific regions). Abyss Nexus plates are easier to discover. It’s now more obvious when you can use Force Palm to attach something in an Abyss Puzzle, and you’ll get more hints from lanterns and Blinding Flash (including for breakable walls). Your camp in Pailune now has more space for a farm and ranch.
The Memory Fragments list in the Visione will now, thankfully, only show those that have been collected. Item details are now viewable in your storage, and various issues with optimization, performance, etc., have also been addressed. That’s not including the improvements to indoor lighting and reflections on water.
Is now when the team finally decides to take a break? Most likely not, which makes me wonder if it isn’t setting an unhealthy standard for itself. Nevertheless, if we can expect this level of support beyond the current roadmap, who’s to say where the limit is? For now, Crimson Desert is in the best place it’s ever been (until probably next week), and we can’t wait to see what’s next.