[Weekend in Games] Crimson Desert Faces Harsh Debut Amid Divided Reviews... A Look Back at Previous Titles

Pearl Abyss Shares Plunge 42% Despite Ambitious New Title
65 Out of 89 Game Critics Give Positive Reviews
Complaints Raised About "Uncomfortable Controls"

Pearl Abyss's ambitious new title, "Crimson Desert," faced a harsh debut as its stock price plummeted following mixed reviews from critics and users. Opinions among gamers were sharply divided over the game's graphics and controls, resulting in both concerns and hopes for its future success.

Pearl Abyss's new work, Crimson Desert. Provided by Pearl Abyss

On March 20, Pearl Abyss closed at 41,500 won, down 9.78% from the previous day. The stock had climbed to a high of 71,500 won on March 16, but then dropped by approximately 42% over the next four trading days. On March 19, it even hit its lower limit. Pearl Abyss's decline is linked to the less-than-expected reception of its new release, Crimson Desert. On March 19, the global review site Metacritic aggregated scores from 89 major game review outlets and rated Crimson Desert at 78 points.

Metacritic is a platform that compiles review scores from major game media outlets to provide an average rating. Each outlet’s assigned score and evaluation are also published, allowing for a detailed look at how a game is received. Scores from 75 to 100 are classified as positive, 50 to 74 as mixed, and 0 to 49 as negative.

Crimson Desert: Sharp Contrast in Reviews... Users Are Even More Critical

On the 19th, the global review site Metacritic aggregated scores from 89 major game review outlets and rated Red Scarf at 78 points. Metacritic homepage

Reviews from game media outlets regarding Crimson Desert are highly polarized. Of the 89 outlets, 65 gave Crimson Desert a positive review. Even among these positive assessments, opinions varied. While 22 outlets awarded the game scores of 90 or above, 30 outlets gave it a score of 80 or less.

The video game-focused outlet "Gamer Heroes" gave Crimson Desert a perfect score of 100, referencing the acclaimed game "Dark Souls." Gamer Heroes commented, "While Dark Souls was used as a benchmark for player skill, Crimson Desert has shifted that standard," adding, "This game boasts the most challenging boss battles in industry history, demanding patience, determination, and exceptional skill."

Meanwhile, 23 outlets gave mixed reviews and one outlet issued a negative assessment. Another game-focused outlet, "GameLiner," gave Crimson Desert a score of 45, stating, "Hyped as an ambitious open-world adventure, it ultimately falls short of expectations." The review continued, "It's filled with a confusing story, unappealing characters, and quests reminiscent of typical MMO games. The combat system features various mechanics but lacks depth, and the artificially steep difficulty curve and sluggish controls are also problematic."

Users were particularly negative about the game's controls and its underdeveloped story. According to the game distribution platform Steam, one user left a "Not Recommended" review, saying, "The key controls are so difficult that it makes trying the game really tough. Even if the lack of puzzle intuitiveness is fixed, the awkward key controls make it hard to enjoy the puzzles." Another user pointed out, "The random storyline and its progression completely break immersion, and you can't even skip it. If skipping the story were possible, I could progress quickly and enjoy the adventure, but that's not an option."

On the other hand, there were some positive reactions as well, such as, "There are so many interactive elements in the environment that the controls may feel inconvenient, but aside from that, there’s nothing to complain about. With so many exploration features, people who like to take their time and do various things will probably enjoy it."

Looking at Metacritic Scores of Previous Hits... Results Were Skewed to One Side

Neowiz's soulslike action game "P's Lie" was released in September 2023 and received an average score of 80 from 68 media outlets on Metacritic based on PlayStation 5. Metacritic homepage

So how did previous game releases fare on Metacritic?

Neowiz’s highly praised soulslike action game "P’s Lie" was released in September 2023 and received an average score of 80 from 68 media outlets on PlayStation 5. Notably, the positive scores were mostly clustered in the high 80s and 90s. The number of outlets giving mixed or negative reviews was much lower, at 9 and 1 respectively, compared to Crimson Desert. Another popular game, Krafton's "Battlegrounds" (PC version), was released in December 2017 and scored 86 points. In the case of Battlegrounds, there were no negative reviews.

Expanding the comparison to AAA open-world titles, Crimson Desert’s score appears even less impressive. FromSoftware’s "Elden Ring" launched in February 2022 and received an average of 96 points from Metacritic, with all 86 outlets giving it a positive review. Another open-world title, Rockstar Games’ "Red Dead Redemption 2," received a score of 97. The only outlet to give a mixed review, Slant Magazine, assigned a score of 70—still not far from a positive rating. Even the content of this review was closer to praise, stating that "the game's depiction of moving and beautiful locations somewhat undermines the sense of despair and hardship it seeks to convey."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.