Crimson Desert Brings Action From the Black Desert Online Developer

Make like 50 Cent and stain the sand blood red in Crimson Desert, a new game from Pearl Abyss, developer of the MMORPG Black Desert Online. It’s set in the distant past of Black Desert Online.

Check out the first gameplay trailer here:

The trailer showed in-development gameplay and graphics from Crimson Desert, revealing a number of character models, combat, cutscenes, and environments. The game takes place in the fantasy world of Pywel and sports a more grounded, realistic aesthetic (though flashes of colorful magic use and other supernatural effects are present). Players will take control of mercenaries in a tough harsh environment, “A Struggle of All, for All.”

The player is shown having it out with various humans, orc-like humanoids, and monsters, and even at one point riding a dragon in an aerial battle. Traversal mechanics also show up, with the Crimson Desert player swinging on a rope and climbing up a large beast to stab it. The gameplay appears to recall Dragon’s Dogma, with its emphasis on flashy combat animations and an open world. Earlier previews suggested players would command mercenaries as a part of the action.

Crimson Desert is in development for PC and console. No release date has been announced, though interested players can subscribe to a newsletter on the official site.