- Peal Abyss' Crimson Desert has been delayed to Q1 2026
- It was previously slated for late 2025
- The delay is due to voice-over work and console certification
Gamescom 2025 is shaping up to be one of the best in years, with plenty of games from developers like Capcom and Microsoft's Activision likely to be on show for fans as playable demos. Unfortunately, one ambitious title from Pearly Abyss that I'm pumped for has give us an early update – and, spoiler alert, it's not exactly great news.
As reported by Gematsu, Pearl Abyss' Crimson Desert has been delayed to Q1 2026, as revealed during a Q2 earnings conference call. While the open-world RPG has never had an official release date, it was slated to launch in late 2025. This delay is due to the ongoing process of 'voice-overs' and 'console certification' leading up to release.
Crimson Desert will join the likes of Capcom's Resident Evil Requiem with playable demos available for fans attending Gamescom and PAX West in August, with bigger updates on both games expected for Opening Night Live with Geoff Keighley.
To say I'm bummed about Crimson Desert's delay is an understatement, as it's my most anticipated title between 2025 and 2026 – and yes, that means more so than GTA 6.
While the wait for Rockstar Games' next entry in the GTA franchise has been an agonizing one for just over a decade, Crimson Desert looks set to be a big surprise and become a goliath within the action-adventure genre.
I think it's safe to say that we know GTA 6 will be an instant hit in sales and will likely have the most immersive and realistic open-world in gaming. However, a significant number of gamers still believe Crimson Desert's open-world realism is too good to be true. So, the element of surprise that could come from Crimson Desert's potential major success is something I'm very much looking forward to.
Analysis: A delay hurts, but if it means more polish, then that's fine by me
While nobody wants to hear that an exciting title has been delayed, it's not all bad. The performance and optimization of games on consoles and especially PC is the worst I've seen in all my years of gaming, with plenty of developers seemingly relying on Nvidia, AMD, and Intel upscaling methods and frame generation technology.
We know that voice-over work and console certification are suggested to be significant factors in the delay, but I would not be surprised if better optimization before launch is a target for Pearl Abyss.
The same applies to GTA 6, which was also slated to launch in late 2025, but is now set for May 26, 2026. One of the worst things that could happen for any highly-anticipated title is bad performance; Respawn Entertainment's Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is a prime example, as it's a great sequel to Fallen Order, but is ruined by consistent stuttering on console and PC.
In this case, Pearl Abyss should take all the time it needs to polish and refine Crimson Desert, to help it live up to the huge expectations that it's set.
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