The time I spent was approximately 130 hours. crimson desertI learned a lot of valuable lessons, all of which are rooted in the fact that this game, of course, is far from what I expected. What I initially thought was that this game was a typical action-adventure game with a story that was easy to get through even when you weren't exploring the huge open world. At first, it seemed like it was trying to rewrite the rulebook by applying what felt like every rule in the industry, making it seem like a game that just about anyone could enjoy. In that respect, I thought it could appeal to a variety of tastes and play styles. However, even after investing only 10 hours, crimson desertI was already realizing how quickly this game was going to disappoint a lot of people because it wasn't what it seemed.
To be clear: crimson desert It's not an easy game and there are many ways to play it. Even when I try to get my hands on it, I have a hard time doing so because there's so much going on in the game that I can't even follow the tutorial. Gear and skill progression is a huge task, as it feels like you'll need an increasing number of Abyss artifacts and crafting materials. And the combat takes some getting used to. Because if you play as intended, you will be punished. But after about 30 hours of playing, I've come to accept that I need to play at my own pace rather than my own, and therein lies one rule I need to learn early to avoid frustration and burnout.
Crimson Desert developer shares fell nearly 30% after disappointing reviews.
Pearl Abyss stock fell sharply after critical reviews of Crimson Desert failed to live up to the long-awaited game's high expectations.
Instead of mainstreaming the story of the Crimson Desert, enjoy that world.
Here are the pros and cons: Don't use the mainline. crimson desertIf you don't listen to his story, you may fall into a world of hurt and feel like quitting the game at some point. not without reason, crimson desertThe essential bosses can be quite difficult if you want to progress through the game's main objectives smoothly. I guess I'm used to open world action adventure games that treat the story as something the player actually wants to experience and enjoy, rather than something full of massive difficulty spikes that seem impossible to get through at first. But that's not the case here. crimson desert It seems like you take pride in checking your ego at every turn.
Who is that character?
Check out the silhouette before time runs out.
start
Check out the silhouette before time runs out.
Easy (7.5 seconds) Medium (5.0 seconds) Hard (2.5 seconds) Eternal Death (2.5 seconds)
People who collaborated on the game's review process still haven't stopped talking about the first major ego overhaul (I won't spoil it here), acknowledging that it will probably be a brick wall for many players who were looking forward to progressing through the story. I personally was able to beat that particular boss on my second try, but only because I started playing. crimson desertIt was the most important unwritten rule of and as a result the fight became easier. Naturally, I came away from the encounter feeling like I could take on the world, but the next big difficulty spike once again blocked my path, grounding me and ultimately forcing me to once again play by the game's rules rather than my own.
I'm not sure why developers insist on making boss fights this difficult in their games. Especially since the emergence of the Soulslike genre seems to have exhausted many players. In fact, it has now reached a point where many developers have made it clear that their games are not Soulslike. Simply because you don't want to turn your players away before they have a chance to play the game. black myth wukong. nevertheless, crimson desert It may not be Soulslike, but it can definitely feel like Souls at times due to how challenging the main bosses are. But again, forcing yourself to adhere to the loudest unwritten rules of the game is the way to overcome these encounters.
Once you learn how to pace yourself in the open world of Crimson Desert, things get a lot easier.
I said this in my review. crimson desertBut the game seems to make it a priority to slow things down at every opportunity. As soon as you start to feel like you're actually making progress, you're thrown off by overly complicated puzzles or, as I already said, difficult boss fights. But that's it –if you want to succeed crimson desertI need to slow down. It's trying to pace you because that's how it's intended to be played. Sure, it may appear that you want it to play the way you want it to, but that's more likely to be an illusion we've created in our minds because of what we typically see in this genre.
i would say so crimson desert's story is actually designed with side characters, and the open world plays the lead role. So engaging the intended protagonist is, in some ways, the way to win. crimson desert At its own game. I started realizing this after about 30 hours, and it changed my perspective. Boss fights no longer got any harder, and puzzles no longer baffled me as much as they used to. Also, I have failed to mention until now how difficult inventory management is. crimson desert There is no player storage and the only way to increase inventory space is to complete side quests and buy small bags from vendors.
Pearl Abyss has confirmed that a patch is on the way that will help address the game's ongoing inventory limitations by giving players storage space in their homes.
But it also helps my point. all obstacles crimson desert You can overcome it if you pace yourself and enjoy the open world. There's so much to do in the game, and thankfully there's enough variety that you won't get bored even after over 100 hours. However, engaging in these activities will ultimately net you more Abyss artifacts than you can count in your gear, skills, and stat progression, more inventory space to stock up on all that junk, and even powerful gear you can't get in the main story.
So take your time crimson desertYou'll probably enjoy it a lot more and it won't lower your personal score on the game because it's “too hard.” The moment you start thinking of the world as a place to live in rather than as if you have to fight your way through the story, everything should fall into place. Bosses will start to feel easier to manage, progress will feel smoother, and the frustrations that were once inevitable will begin to fade. Learn the rules early, crimson desert It becomes much more about embracing everything that comes in between than just surviving the hardest moments.
- released
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March 19, 2026
- ESRB
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Age 17 or older / Blood, drug-related, high-intensity violence, verbal abuse
- developer
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Pearl Abyss
- publisher
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Pearl Abyss
