Libby Park: critics did not have time to leave the story

Libby Park, head of Pearl Abyss Europe, told The Game Business that critics scored Crimson Desert below players because they had less time to step away from the main story into the world and the systems. She calls the launch version a different and noticeably weaker one: many updates have shipped since.

Metacritic currently shows 77 from critics against 8.7 from players. Crimson Desert Enhanced has 83 percent positive reviews of all time on Steam. Park says reviewers had a build that differed from the final release, and the time usually went to the campaign, which she does not consider the strongest part. In Enhanced the central story was rewritten directly, which is rare for games.

The charm, in her wording, is scattered through the world: hidden details and the freedom to go past ordinary expectations. She thinks there was no fair chance to study that inside a review window.