Pearl Abyss 称审核流程导致《Crimson Desert》Metacritic 77 分，但 600 万销量并不支持该说法

By every metric, Pearl Abyss' Crimson Desert is a smashing success. Having sold over 6 million copies and generating $427 million in revenue, the Korean developer proved not only that it was more than ready to handle a sprawling single-player open-world game, but also that a development approach that takes player feedback into heavy consideration is the key to success. This is made even more impressive by the fact that the game didn't score well in launch reviews, an issue that European CEO Lybee Park pins on both the nature of the review process and the game itself.

"Critics had to play the build that is not the exact same version as the launch game," said European CEO Lybee Park on The Game Business Show. "They also had limited time. Usually, the classical approach when they review the game is to follow the main storyline. But our unique charm is spread across our in-game world. All those tiny details that are hidden. I am not sure critics had the fair chance to explore those during the review period."

Having reviewed Crimson Desert, I can confirm that Pearl Abyss did its very best to give us as much time as possible to explore Pywel and experience a lot of what it has to offer besides the main story, although the roughness of early builds led to some frustration, including inventory space that was even more limited than it was in the launch build.

Unfortunately, the game is so massive that even after hundreds of hours, it is possible to discover all sorts of secrets, so once I realized this, I decided to stop rushing the main story and immerse myself in this world. This is probably the reason why I scored it 9.0 in a late review as opposed to other critics, a score I would now increase with the significant improvements introduced for the story in the Enhanced upgrade. After all, a regular player isn't gonna rush through a game like this, so slowing down let me align my perspective with most players'.

Still, this lukewarm reception didn't prevent Pearl Abyss from achieving a dream of sorts for their game: excellent console sales. "Console is the dream goal. The Korean game industry is known for PC. It’s more familiar to us," said Park. "But people have been growing up playing and watching those amazing console titles, and dreamed of making one. So those experiences making PC games has now given us more chance to understand console market, console language and console fans’ needs and wants."

Considering the ongoing support Crimson Desert is receiving from Pearl Abyss, but also from modders, which will culminate in a few weeks with the Charting the Unknown DLC expansion, I have little doubt the game will become even more successful. A success that I believe is wholly deserved: while the game is not terribly original, its incredible combat system and the sum of its parts, now properly connected by a solid narrative, more than make up for it.

About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.

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