“Crimson Desert isn't for everyone.” It's a statement that continues to do the rounds, and it's even one that I included in my own review of the game because I agree. To be fair, that's true, just as it's true of any game. But what does Crimson Desert a special case here is that it seemed to be marketed as a game for everyone before launch – with elements taken from what feels like countless other games that Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Red Dead Redemption 2and the idea that players would be given unlimited freedom to play their way. However, after the game was launched, it turned out to be somewhat untrue, which Crimson Desert turned out to be something a little different than it initially appeared to be, resulting in an early Steam rating of Mixed.
However, the open-world action-adventure game is now around a week old, and its Steam rating has already climbed to Very Positive, meaning at least 80% of reviews submitted to the platform are positive. What's interesting is that it managed to achieve a very positive rating just a couple of days after it had risen to a mostly positive rating, showing a fairly rapid rise in a short period of time. This is actually a rare occurrence for games on Steam, as most that start out with a lower rating, if they eventually improve, don't do so for quite some time after launch. But there is a perfectly valid reason Crimson Deserts increasingly positive ratings on Valve's platform, and there's actually enough evidence to suggest that it can only improve in the coming weeks.
Crimson Desert New Patch fixes one of the game's most annoying issues
Crimson Desert developer Pearl Abyss confirms that a fix is already here for one of the game's most annoying problems.
Reason #1: Crimson Desert is a huge game
The first and most obvious reason Crimson DesertSteam rating keeps rising because it's a huge game. While it doesn't have the biggest open world ever made, what makes it such a sprawling adventure is how much there is to do in the game. And even then, it's not necessarily the amount of content in it Crimson Desert it makes it feel huge, but the variety in that content.
Who is that character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Start
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s) Medium (5.0s) Hard (2.5s) Permadeath (2.5s)
As players move through the open world repeatedly performing what on the surface appear to be the same tasks – like Crimson Desertpp Zelda-like puzzles or region liberation – rarely should they feel like they've seen or experienced the same thing twice, as the game ensures that almost everything at least looks different enough to feel different. Building interiors all seem to have a different layout, while their exteriors have distinct styles. Enemy camps vary in size and enemy types, and clearing one camp can yield valuable rewards or world-shattering transformations, while clearing another can simply add to the player's reputation with a region's faction.
However, the open-world action-adventure game is now around a week old, and its Steam rating has already climbed to Very Positive, meaning at least 80% of reviews submitted to the platform are positive.
There are caves scattered throughout Crimson Deserts open world, some of which contain crafting materials like ores and gems, and others where players can find progression items like Abyss Artifacts or even optional boss encounters that grant powerful gear upon completion. There are random events that players can encounter while traveling from one location to another – such as helping a stranger find their way to a nearby town – and there are more side quests than players can count on, many of which are rewarding simply because of the increased inventory capacity they offer when completed.
But all of this is still only a fraction of what this vast world contains, and the real point I'm making is that, for a review of Crimson Desert to be accurate and therefore believable it would need to be backed up by dozens of hours of in-game time. Sure, players can run into a frustrating issue within just a few hours, but since there's so much more to experience beyond those few hours, a review submitted this early will only reflect a narrow slice of an experience designed to unfold over a long period of time, where early frustrations can eventually evolve into praise.
In other words, as time passes, Crimson DesertThe Steam rating is likely to continue to rise as it takes much longer for players to form an opinion on the game than another title might allow. There are hundreds upon hundreds of hours of content in Crimson Desertwhich means those reviews will continue to trickle in, and if they lean more towards the positive side of the spectrum, so will its overall score. If that trend indeed continues, Crimson Desert may eventually put a finger or two on the overwhelmingly positive Steam rating.
Reason #2: Crimson Desert receives rapid updates
The second most likely reason Crimson DesertThe Steam rating has continued to rise is that Pearl Abyss has been working hard to improve some of the game's most frustrating issues, with three updates to it since its launch just a week ago. I can also say, as someone involved in the review, that the developer also updated the game at least twice with some major fixes that many probably aren't even aware of. Had these issues entered the launch version of the game, Crimson Desert may have had an even steeper hill to climb, so props to the dev team for getting these fixes out so quickly.
Biggest updates made to Crimson Desert since launch
- STORAGE CARD — Private storage at Hernand lodge and Howling Hill camp.
- IMPROVED FAST TRAVEL — New fast travel options at key locations.
- FASTER LEARNING SYSTEM — Reduced time to acquire knowledge and learn skills.
- REBALANCED BOSS FIGHTS — Reed Devil and other bosses bent on justice.
- ADJUSTED CONTROLS — Adjusted keyboard/mouse and controls.
- BUFFER TO HEALING — Increased HP restored from food/items.
- IMPROVED PUZZLE DESIGN — Some puzzles have been adjusted to provide more clarity.
- SIMPLIFIED ENVIRONMENTAL COOPERATION — Example: Chopping trees no longer requires aiming.
But what's happening here is that, like Crimson Desert has improved over time, so has the players' perception of it. It's possible that some players have even gone in and changed their review on Steam to more accurately reflect how they feel about the game now that it's received some much-needed fixes, and if that did and continues to happen, the open-world action-adventure game will rise as a result. Additionally, as current players share their positive impressions of the game after getting some hands-on time with these improvements, even more new players may find their way into the game and end up with a similar view of it.
As time passes, Crimson DesertThe Steam rating is likely to continue to rise as it takes much longer for players to form an opinion on the game than another title might allow.
In the end, what happens to Crimson DesertThe Steam rating feels like the game is finally being seen for what it actually is. It launched with expectations that didn't quite match its identity, and that showed right up in its early reviews. But as players have spent more time with it and as Pearl Abyss has continued to refine the experience, that gap has begun to close. If that pattern holds, there are strong reasons to argue that the current “Highly Positive” rating is still not the ceiling, but just another step in a longer process for players to catch up to what Crimson Desert has been all along.
- Released
-
March 19, 2026
- ESRB
-
Mature 17+ / Blood, drug reference, intense violence, strong language
- Developer
-
Pearl Abyss
- Publisher
-
Pearl Abyss
