Pearl Abyss Says Critics Reviewed an Older Crimson Desert Build

Pearl Abyss is addressing the criticism surrounding Crimson Desert, claiming that reviewers didn’t play the same version that players received at launch. According to a report from PC Gamer, critics “had to play the build that is not the exact same version of the launched game,” and the subhead states: “I don’t think critics had a fair chance to explore.”

This complaint focuses on the review process instead of the final product. Crimson Desert launched on March 19, 2026, priced at $69.99 on Steam. Various review outlets, including IGN, shared their opinions on the open-world action RPG based on pre-release access.

Wccftech highlights the situation through a Metacritic score. Their headline reads Pearl Abyss blames the review process for Crimson Desert’s 77 Metacritic, while also noting that the game has sold 6 million copies. We couldn’t independently verify either number with the available data, so consider those figures as Wccftech’s findings.

Player feedback paints a more positive picture than the critics’ average. Steam shows an 86% positive rating based on 80,507 reviews, a substantial sample size for a single title. This gap between a 77 critic score and an 86% user score underpins Pearl Abyss’s argument: players who experienced the final game enjoyed it more than those who reviewed an earlier version.

However, Pearl Abyss’s case has some limitations. It’s common for review builds to differ from what launches, and publishers determine the access terms. A developer asking for a fair chance to explore a vast open world is also raising a point about the time available, not just the differences in builds.

Since the release, Pearl Abyss has continued to support the game. On September 23, 2026, Crimson Desert received a patch and earned two nominations for Golden Joystick Awards 2026. These actions suggest the studio doesn’t see the launch reception as the final verdict.

By The Numbers

Release date	March 19, 2026
Steam price	$69.99
Steam user reviews	86% positive (80,507 reviews)
Current Steam players	15,371
Reported Metacritic / sales (Wccftech)	77 / 6 million

Community Pulse

The community data we’ve gathered is limited and not very representative. Our sentiment analysis highlighted 10 signals and categorized the mood as “mostly negative.” However, the Steam reviews surfaced were just the same joke about a missing character mod, repeated three times. This doesn’t match the 86% positive rating from over 80,000 reviews. We won’t quote it, as it doesn’t address the review-build issue or the game’s overall quality.

What To Watch

• Re-reviews or score updates: Keep an eye on whether outlets revisit Crimson Desert based on the current build and if any Metacritic score changes.
• Player retention: With 15,371 concurrent players on Steam right now, the next patch cycle will reveal if the post-launch audience remains.
• Review-build policy: Pearl Abyss’s complaint could influence how publishers manage pre-launch access for large open-world games.