Crimson Desert’s lower review scores were because critics didn’t get a ‘fair chance to explore’, exec says
The press “had limited time” and didn’t play the launch version, she says
Crimson Desert’s review scores were lower than expected because the press weren’t given the optimal experience, a Pearl Abyss executive says.
In an interview with The Game Business, the studio’s European CEO Lybee Park was asked why she felt the player response to game was extremely positive but the Metacritic score was 77 (which is not necessarily bad, but perhaps lower than expected).
Park replied that, in her opinion, she didn’t feel that critics were given the optimal version of the game, and also weren’t given enough time to explore it properly.
“I do believe both parties have fair points, especially the critics,” she said. “They had to play a build that was not the exact same version as the launch game.
“Also, they had limited time. Usually the classical approach when they review the game is following the main quest line, but with Crimson Desert, our unique charm is spread all over our in-game world. All those tiny details that are hidden, the freedom to actually explore even further beyond the common expectations.
“So all those unique bits and interesting new, freshened-up bits, I don’t think critics had a fair chance to explore those and experience them while in those reviewing periods.”
Since the release of Crimson Desert in March, developer Pearl Abyss has been continually improving it with patches and updates, including new difficulty levels, storage changes and graphical improvements.
In August, Pearl Abyss told shareholders that it’s been working on a Switch 2 version of Crimson Desert, which is being planned for the first half of next year.
“For platform expansion, the core focus is ensuring that Crimson Desert’s signature graphics, action, and open-world experience are fully preserved, rather than executing a simple port,” the studio said.
“In the case of Switch 2, the game has reached a playable baseline, and we are currently conducting technical reviews regarding performance optimization and quality standard compliance, targeting a release in the first half of next year.”
