With this feature, we will be taking a look at how Crimson Desert might end up being one of the biggest surprise hits of this year.
If its wealth of ambitious mechanics comes together as promised, the only thing holding me back from endless emergent possibilities will be my imagination.
It might look like an RPG but the developers insist Crimson Desert is an unique open-world action adventure with obvious inspirations.
"You don't want to let people down at launch by making them anticipate something to such a high level," says Pearl Abyss's Will Powers.
"It isn't 'TikTok' brain," wrote one social media user noting the utility behind the feature for second playthroughs or repeated conversations.
Pearl Abyss is also leveraging the console's Geometry Shader Oversubscription and NGG Culling to render Pywel's many detailed elements.
"I've repeated 100s of times that we'll reveal things ahead of launch to give people adequate time to still pre-order the game."
It may have several familiar-looking elements, but Pearl Abyss's open-world title combines them into something that's completely its own.
Ahead of its March 19th launch, an innocuous image of Kliff and Oongka together on separate mounts could hint at co-op support.
An absolutely massive month of big-name titles, from Crimson Desert and Marathon to WWE 2K26 and Pokémon Pokopia, awaits.
Pywel's an interesting place, full of mysteries, interesting stories, and a vast swathe of explorable land that can have you spending a lot of time with Crimson Desert. That's kind of like Red Dead Re...
Ray-traced diffused global illumination helps Pywel shine in all the right ways, but the water physics must be seen to be believed.
Kliff, Oongka and Damiane are played by Alec Newman, Stewart Scudamore, and Rebecca Hansen, who each had unique approaches.
Will Powers of Pearl Abyss America says, "The second people start demanding info... 'you NEED to tell me this', etc... You're ignored."
Less than a month away, this action RPG is still full of secrets. Here are 15 new details you should know before launch.
Alec Newman, Rebecca Hansen and Stewart Scudamore bring the three playable leads - Kliff, Damiane, and Oongka - to life.
Pywell feels bigger than ever, with plenty to unpack as the wait for Crimson Desert enters its final stretch and Klyff begins his fight to restore the Greymanes’ former glory.
Mike York noted that, if Rockstar Games drops the ball, Crimson Desert is also in the running for game of the year awards.
Marketing and strategic planning expert Will Powers confirms that humans are voicing "all mainline" and side quest NPCs.
In this feature, we break down 20 of the biggest open-world games set to make waves in 2026 and beyond.
