Crimson Desert Reviews
Crimson Desert will impress some and alienate others – and both sides will have a valid point. This blend of Tears of the Kingdom, Elden Ring and Assassin’s Creed continues to intrigue with its open-world design and interactivity, but I fear that long before I reach the end of the story, I’ll grow weary of its sheer scale and the constant struggle with the poorly designed UI and inventory system. [Review in progress]
Review in Polish | Read full review
Despite a few minor issues, Crimson Desert sets a new benchmark for this style of open-world experience, one that will be extremely difficult for future games to match.
Crimson Desert feels like a single player version of an MMORPG that has been live for years. Its sheer scale alone is enough to guarantee hundreds of hours of playtime. But with its weak guidance, cumbersome interactions, and many design choices that show little regard for user experience, whether that time feels enjoyable or exhausting will likely vary from player to player.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
Proving that looks aren't everything, Crimson Desert's stunning visuals and strong performances aren't enough to save it from being a disappointing experience. Jam-packed with content and systems that make it feel like a Jack of all features, master of none with an unenjoyable gameplay loop, Crimson Desert is really just a single-player MMORPG in all but name.
Crimson Desert is one of the most ambitious games in a long time. It's an expansive, and deeply detailed fantasy world that constantly invites exploration and rewards curiosity. Its fluid, skill-based combat and sheer scale are genuinely impressive, but that same ambition often works against it. A lack of focus, overly complex systems, and a slow, demanding progression can make the experience feel overwhelming and, at times, exhausting. It's a game of extremes: deeply immersive and rewarding for those willing to invest the time, but far from accessible for everyone.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Crimson Desert is a demanding, complex RPG that can feel punishing and occasionally unfair, especially without constant progression. Yet it offers a breathtaking open world with unmatched scale and depth. Its reception will vary widely'frustrating for some, but deeply rewarding for those willing to fully invest.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
I had high hopes for Crimson Desert, but... I was more disappointed than thrilled. A single-player MMO based on things we love from other great games—it just couldn't work out as well as we thought.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Dark Souls has often been used to measure one's gaming prowess, but that measuring stick has changed with Crimson Desert. Not only does it boast some of the most challenging boss battles ever seen in the industry, its required levels of patience, determination, and ability have set a new gold standard.
An ambitious adventure set in a visually stunning world that tries to do a bit too much, ultimately feeling underdeveloped in some respects.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Crimson Desert offers a vast and visually stunning open world, full of freedom and exploration, but its simplistic story and unclear objectives may frustrate many players.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
An exceptional and stunningly beautiful open-world action game, with incredibly rich gameplay and a pleasantly old-fashioned level of difficulty, regardless of its potentially frustrating flaws.
Crimson Desert, while offering a truly exceptional offline MMORPG experience, falls slightly short of expectations due to some minor shortcomings.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
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Review in German | Read full review
Crimson Desert unfolds in a vast open world filled with an enormous amount of content, but there are simply too many gameplay elements scattered without order, clashing with one another. There is room for improvement, but as it stands now, it falls somewhat short of being a truly great game.
Review in Korean | Read full review
It might not be the cleanest contender in the open-world arena, but it’s easily one of the most interesting. A sprawling, slightly chaotic, thoroughly entertaining swing that connects far more often than it misses.
This is a massive undertaking for any development team. It's ambitious to a point that it becomes curious that it was attempted. But unlike Captain Ahab, this is a level of investment and ambition that ultimately pays off in the highest order. The level of detail in Crimson Desert is unlike anything we have seen in this console generation.
Crimson Desert is everything I hoped it would be, and it has the potential to be one of the biggest titles of this generation of gaming.
Crimson Desert is frustrating and buggy and can be very player-unfriendly, but it's also beautiful, deep, seemingly endless and monumentally, perhaps detrimentally, ambitious.
Crimson Desert is a breath of fresh air for those looking for true ambition and adventure, as it delivers one of the most experimental combat systems and an open world on par with anything Rockstar Games has ever made.
If you look up the term ‘open world’ ‘Crimson Desert’ is bound to be listed right next to it. Because you can’t get much more open-world than that. It offers a world in which you can completely lose yourself. What could be better?
Review in German | Read full review