By Javier Picazo Feliú
Madrid, Mar 22 (EFE).- Since the release of its first images “Crimson Desert” has captured the attention of the gaming world. It boasts ultra-realistic and colorful graphics, an immense world full of life, and nearly every action mechanic a fan of adventure games could dream of. The game is all that and more because it is excessively ambitious and chaotic, with the potential to be a legendary experience.
Crimson Desert (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and Steam) is a massive work that will leave no one indifferent due to its contradictions. It is simultaneously frustrating and dazzling, fun and unattainable, with a multitude of errors to polish, yet fully enjoyable from the outset.
Korean developer Pearl Abyss tried to make its game as big as possible, replicating the virtues of video game legends like GTA, Zelda, Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, and Red Dead Redemption.
The result is the largest open world possible, full of magical creatures, races, photorealistic graphics, details, enormous action, battles, puzzles, interaction, and hundreds of missions.
In its pursuit of perfection, the developer stumbled upon its own ambition. In the absence of future improvements and patches, the final result feels unpolished: the controls are frustrating, the difficulty feels contrived at times, the puzzles are inconsistent, and the development is confusing and exasperating.
However, the world they recreate, Pywel, is absolutely intoxicating and interactive. Exploring it on foot or by horse, robot, or bear; getting lost in its vastness; visiting each of its regions; and touring its bustling towns and cities is an unparalleled experience.
Exploring a magical world full of life
With an incomparable attention to detail, it has been carefully crafted to create an almost infinite action-adventure role-playing game. The game features a continent where players can do whatever they want.
Players can fish, create a farm, buy animals, get a pet and customize it, utilize the agricultural and livestock production they generate, manage a camp, add companions, interact with them, send them on errands, and even visit the hairdresser.
And all this without delving into the main story or the game’s secondary missions, barely scratching the central plot and starting with its chapter narrative.
The developers have done an enormous job trying to cover all genres and appeal to all player profiles. With this, they achieve a massive, vibrant result: the gigantic map overflows with realistic life, mixing characters from the most elaborate fantasies.
However, combat suffers from technical and gameplay flaws that mar the experience: mechanics that don’t quite fit, complex tutorials, and somewhat confusing command usage.
It is a title that never ceases to amaze, yet it remains an enigma. Its potential is undeniable, and it has all the makings of a legendary game. However, to reach that status, it must address issues such as the imprecision in its action scenes, which give the impression of being resolved hastily.
On portals like Metacritic, which calculate a weighted average based on analyses from specialized media and users, the game does not receive a score higher than 80 out of 100. This rating rewards its virtues and penalizes its defects. It is a diamond in the rough that offers the opportunity to visit an absolutely incomparable universe.
jpf/dgp
