The developer has announced via The Game Awards account that the action-adventure game Crimson Desert, which is developed by Pearl Abyss, has been revealed as “gold.” The game is finished, and it will be released on the already known date of March 19. The announcement has already generated a lot of excitement among gamers that were watching for the next big open-world game.
The announcement was, in the light of the big news, and it was about time, to be honest. Crimson Desert, the game that has been teasing us with stunning trailers since early 2020, is finally, really, for sure finished. The only game developer, Pearl Abyss, has reached “gold” status which when translated to the game lingo means “the discs are going to be printed, no going back on that.” And the date is set: March 19. Make a note of it, set the alarm, do whatever.
Players’ reactions on social media were really… a whole mood. A total mixture of excitement, optimism, and a reasonable doubt. Which, to be honest, is pretty normal for any major game these days. There are people like ‘Artemas’ who have already gone ahead and ordered their copy, declaring that they are “eagerly awaiting a Massive open-world game.” Then you have others like ‘Rissa’s Missing Horn’ who are “praying it won’t be another empty open world… I really hope it’s PACKED with content and quests.” And both sides are absolutely right.
Some comments were simply overflowing with excitement. ‘Shade’ wrote, “Crimson Desert is gonna be another GOTY contender,” while ‘Maximalist’ only said, “Finally! The combat looks awesome. March 19th cannot come soon enough.” That combat does look insane from the videos released showing it all flashy and physics-based. But then again, there’s the cautious crowd. ‘Manny’ said it very clearly: “This better be good; I am a bit skeptical and tbh let’s hope for the best.” And ‘Shadow Stone’ seemed to be in a similar position, they are “waiting for reviews and feedback on it.” Very smart of them, actually!
In the comments section, a little humor came up. This is a funny thing that happens every time a game says “goes gold.” User ‘BiooMass’ asked what the term “has gone gold” means; he seemed puzzled. Fortunately, another user, ‘Meliodas’, was there and said: “It means the final product is complete and is ready for release. In other words, it will not get a delay before its current release date.” Nice, the community’s service!
And there were, for sure, some… odd viewpoints to be shared as part of the gaming debate. One user, ‘Vegnon’, pointed out in quite an unusual manner that the developers are “our Asian friends,” which will guarantee “unlike our western friends, we’ll have solid disc builds.” Uhhh, right then. Another one tried to create the exact opposite of the friendship with the team’s diversity claiming that they just wanted to start a fight for no reason. Most people just ignored that and stayed focused on the game, which is where the attention should be.
The hype is authentic, and so are the questions. Is this going to be the new impressive open-world RPG to which we can spend hundreds of hours? Or will it fall into the “most beautiful but boring map” category? Pearl Abyss is the creator of the breathtakingly beautiful Black Desert Online, which is also known as a grinding-heavy MMO. Initially, it was dreamed as an MMO prequel, it was to be a multiplayer game but then decided to offer us a single-player/co-op narrative adventure. So, a lot of pressure is put on the developers.
A gamer’s comment, ‘io’, was a joke that most likely reflects the thought process of many other players: “now they can start developing Doke V.” Doke V is another strange-looking Pearl Abyss project that combines sci-fi with giant mechs and is the one everyone is talking about. The studio’s schedule might be tight, but still, getting Crimson Desert right is a very important first step.
The going gold announcement for Crimson Desert is a far-fetched dream that marks the end of a long and difficult development phase and the beginning of the final countdown for the gamers. It is a moment of great faith, for gamers now have a definite date to look forward to while depending on Pearl Abyss to make a stunning world. Whether it turns out to be another Game of the Year candidate or a lesson in expectation management, the gaming community has now officially boarded the journey and is all set to check the fate of the desert—that it could be either red with promise or just a mirage.
