Ever since we saw those sweeping vistas in the early Crimson Desert trailers, the question on everyone's mind has been: How big is this game? What is scope and scale? It's impossible to tell from video clips alone, and every gameplay preview so far has been scripted boss fights, with no exploration of the open world. Thankfully, we may finally have some answers.
Crimson Desert Director of Public Relations Will Powers sat down for an interview with creator Luke Stephens and Loyalty to answer some questions about Pearl Abyss' upcoming RPG. While we didn't get much new information about the title (details have been surprisingly vague so far), Powers was able to confirm that the map in Crimson Desert is “twice the size of Skyrim” and “larger than Red Dead Redemption 2.”
Size isn't everything
Powers is actually very clear with the details, and while we've got some information about the world size, there's been nothing concrete about it yet, and certainly no comparison to the size of other popular open world titles. “We can say that this world is at least twice as big as the open world, the playable area, of Skyrim. It's bigger than the map of Red Dead Redemption 2.”
In general, verticality is a big part of how big the world feels. Skyrim feels huge because you're mostly climbing mountains or exploring deep into caves. There will be similar ways of exploring the Crimson Desert, according to Powers, “climbing, flying and traversal are all built around that sense of scale.”
While this is exciting, it's important to understand what this means for Crimson Desert's moment-to-moment gameplay. Map size doesn't necessarily equate to 'good' gameplay, but Powers is also keen to emphasize that one of the team's main goals is to make the world feel interesting to inhabit, move around and explore.
“We don't want a world that feels big but empty.”
“The idea was never to make something big. It was to make something that felt alive wherever you were.” This is one of the most important factors that I believe has been missing from the marketing rollout thus far. We've seen engaging combat and massive boss fights, but what about Pyvel's story? Who lives in this world? The story behind the scenes can make the world feel much larger than its map size.
Powers is frequently questioned about the story, and is a popular question thread in the community. Players want to know about this game, and what kind of story structure it has. Powers explains, “The real story of the people within the game will be the story of their character rather than the shared story that everyone experiences.” I compare it to a game like Dragon's Dogma 2. No two playthroughs are the same, and the 'narrative' changes based on your decisions about where to go next, which questline to pursue, and which monsters to kill.
Power makes another interesting point about player agency and discovery. “Indirect player guidance is using context clues and stories…conversations you'll see in a tavern or walking around town that can point you in the direction.” This kind of freedom to discover new questlines on your own, rather than being pointed in the right direction by a bright yellow arrow, is likely to make the world of Pyvel feel bigger and more alive.
That being said, we know everything the story The Crimson Desert is kept particularly obscure. It feels like an attempt by the dev team to confound expectations. I don't think it's a sprawling RPG experience with a dense story, but rather a polished combat RPG with open-world exploration and player agency.
Crimson Desert
- issued
-
March 19, 2026
- ESRB
-
Mature 17+ / Blood, drug references, intense violence, strong language
- developer(s)
-
The Pearl Abyss
- Publisher(s)
-
The Pearl Abyss
- Number of players
-
single player
