South Korean developer Pearl Abyss, mainly known for the MMORPG Black Desert Online, announced the delay of Crimson Desert. The studio cited the need for more time and implied the COVID pandemic played a role in the delay, too.

As you might recall, Crimson Desert was originally unveiled at G-Star 2019. Our Kai Powell was on-site and managed to interview Jason Jung, the Lead Producer for Crimson Desert.

We are currently hard at work developing Crimson Desert, which is rapidly evolving with new adventures and exciting experiences. However, we have decided that we need to dedicate more time to adding new ideas for an even deeper, more enriching game. Therefore, in order to create the best possible experience, all the while ensuring the health and safety of everyone involved in delivering the game, we have decided to delay Crimson Desert’s release. We will provide an updated schedule in the future.

Thank you for your ongoing support. We wish you and your loved ones the best of health, and we’ll keep working hard so that we can meet all of you soon in Pywel.

At The Game Awards 2020, Pearl Abyss announced a change in the design direction, moving from the original MMORPG design to an ‘open world action adventure game’ with cooperative elements.

There’s a batch of new Crimson Desert screenshots below, though. Enjoy!