Is *Crimson Desert* on PS5 only a 3.84? Is it worth buying now?

After its official launch on March 20, Crimson Desert quickly faced its first truly meaningful trial: player ratings. It currently holds a score of 3.84 out of 5 on PS5. The number alone doesn’t look too bad, but if you’re familiar with PSN’s generally generous scoring environment, you’ll understand that this is not exactly an easy signal to ignore.

This single-player open-world action-adventure game developed by Pearl Abyss is set on the continent of Pywel. The atmosphere feels like an epic written for adventurers: the scenery is magnificent, but the land itself is far from gentle. Players take on the role of Kliff of the Greymanes, setting out on a journey to fulfill his mission, gathering companions along the way to fight against the forces of the Abyss. More importantly, it is a purely single-player title with no microtransaction shop, something that would normally make it an easy sell for core players.

But the problem lies precisely in what it feels like when you actually play it. Community feedback is currently sharply divided: some players praise its visuals, world atmosphere, and certain genuinely stunning moments, believing the overall quality is solid; others give a much more blunt assessment—that playing it feels like a form of torment. In other words, Crimson Desert is not a case of “failing across the board,” but rather one where, in the areas that matter most—combat feel, pacing, or the overall flow of the experience—it has failed to let everyone settle smoothly into the journey.

From a narrative standpoint, it resembles an ambitious RPG adventure epic: heroes, companions, the Abyss, and a brutal continent—elements that naturally spark anticipation. But whether an open-world action game can truly stand on its own usually depends not just on how grand its premise is, but on whether players feel “respected” in every battle, every stretch of travel, and every step of mission progression. That’s why the 3.84 score stands out: it shows that this ambition has not yet been fully realized.

If you’re wondering whether it’s worth buying right now, my advice is very clear: if you enjoy single-player games and are willing to pay for worldbuilding and presentation, you can wait and see more hands-on impressions first; if you’re especially sensitive to control responsiveness and gameplay comfort, it’s best to wait a little longer. After all, this is not the kind of game you can “buy with your eyes closed”—it’s more like a wilderness that looks magnificent from afar, but may hurt your feet once you step into it.

The most accurate label for Crimson Desert right now is neither masterpiece nor total disaster, but “mixed reception.” For Pearl Abyss, launch is only the beginning of the story; for players, a 3.84 score has already set the emotional tone of chapter one: this world is beautiful, but not everyone is willing to keep walking through it.