Crimson Desert reviews are back in the spotlight, because Pearl Abyss Europe CEO Lybee Park has suggested the game’s Metacritic score of 77 was partly down to critics not getting a fair shot at the open world, pointing to a pre-launch review build and a tight review window that left reviewers sticking to the main quest.
Now, “the critics just didn’t get it” is usually the point where I roll my eyes so hard I can see my own brain, but there’s actually a bit more nuance here than the headline suggests. Let me explain.
What Did Pearl Abyss Actually Say About Crimson Desert Reviews?
Speaking to The Game Business, Park explained that reviewers played a build that wasn’t identical to the launch version, had limited time with it, and mostly followed the main storyline, when a lot of what makes the game special is tucked away in optional corners of the world.
Her exact words were that she was “not sure critics had the fair chance to explore those” during the review period, though, to be fair to her, she also said both sides had fair points, and singled out the critics in particular, which is a lot more gracious than the usual publisher grumbling, isn’t it?
Worth NotingA 77 on Metacritic is not a bad score at all, it’s solidly “good”, and it only looks disappointing because Crimson Desert spent years being hyped as one of the most impressive open worlds ever shown!
Six Million Sales Says Players Didn’t Care Much, Right?
This is the bit that makes the whole conversation interesting, because according to The Game Business, Crimson Desert has sold six million copies, with roughly half of those coming from PlayStation and Xbox, which is a big deal for a studio that built its name on PC with Black Desert Online.
Park even described console success as the big ambition for Pearl Abyss, and as VGC notes, the studio has kept patching the game since its March launch, adding new difficulty levels, storage changes and graphical improvements, with a Switch 2 version planned for the first half of 2027.
Is She Actually Wrong About Open World Reviews?
Here’s the awkward truth, she’s got a point, but only half of one, because huge open-world games genuinely are hard to review on a deadline, and anyone who’s tried to “finish” one in a week knows you end up mainlining the story and ignoring the… very shiny side quests the developers spent years on!
But reviewers also judge the game that ships, not the game that exists six months and a dozen patches later, and if the main quest is where some critics found problems, that’s still a fair criticism, because the main quest is the part every single player is going to see.
- Metacritic score: 77
- Sales: six million copies, around half on PS5 and Xbox
- Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC
- Coming next: a Switch 2 version, planned for the first half of 2027
Should You Care About This, or Just Play Crimson Desert?
Honestly, if you’ve been on the fence because of the reviews, the bigger story here is that the game you’d buy today has had months of updates that reviewers never saw, so it’s worth reading a few recent player impressions before deciding, rather than relying purely on launch-week scores.
If you’re the kind of player who loves poking into every cave and ruin, this sounds right up your street, but if you mostly stick to the main story, the critics’ complaints are probably still relevant to you. Either way, a sale wouldn’t hurt!
And if you love an open world that rewards the curious, our guide to getting the best start in Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is waiting for you, no review build required.
FAQ
What is Crimson Desert’s Metacritic score?
Crimson Desert has a Metacritic score of 77, which Pearl Abyss believes was affected by the review build and limited review time.
Why does Pearl Abyss think Crimson Desert reviews were lower?
Pearl Abyss Europe CEO Lybee Park said critics played a pre-launch build, had limited time, and mostly followed the main quest rather than exploring, which she believes affected Crimson Desert reviews.
Is Crimson Desert coming to Switch 2?
Yes, Pearl Abyss plans to release Crimson Desert on Switch 2 in the first half of 2027.
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