Crimson Desert

Eurogamer's review of Crimson Desert, written by Lewis Gordon, presents a largely critical assessment, comparing the game to "prestige Candy Crush" — a vast world and even vaster array of MMO-like activities mixed with glittering fidelity, but lacking character, texture, or charm. The review opens by noting the game requires three loading screens, framing Kliff's entry into the world of Pywel as something approaching stepping into heaven. The first major area, Hernand, is described as frequentl...

GameSpot's review of Crimson Desert awards a 7/10, calling it a game whose spectacular open world and thrilling combat are only let down by a few narrative and quality-of-life issues. The reviewer wanted to love it more than he did. The open world is described as expansive, technologically impressive, and fascinating to explore. The reviewer tells numerous exploration stories: scaling a cliff to find a mysterious wooden pulley with a breathtaking panorama, wingsuiting between rocky spires in a ...

IGN's review of Crimson Desert awards a 6/10, calling it an extremely ambitious open-world adventure whose ambition makes it both incredibly cool and gobsmackingly infuriating in almost equal measure. The reviewer spent 130 hours completing the main story and a good chunk of side content. The game is described as feeling like it was designed to combine elements of all favorite big-budget open-world games — The Witcher 3's adventuring, Red Dead Redemption 2's slow horseback conversations, Tears ...

PC Gamer's review of Crimson Desert awards an 80/100, calling it vast and obtuse in a way that will frustrate some and exhilarate others — a fascinating journey even when the destination isn't all that. The reviewer spent 75 hours oscillating between fascination and irritation while feeling like she'd barely scratched the surface. The game is described as the "Yes, and" of videogames, stuffed with every mechanic and idea that has ever existed. The review lists an incredible array of activities:...