With just over a month to go until launch, Crimson Desert is shaping up as one of 2026’s headline open-world releases – long in development, surrounded by questions, and positioned as Pearl Abyss’s big move toward a much more mainstream audience beyond its traditional MMO base. As part of that shift, the studio has now confirmed it is dropping a familiar monetization staple in parts of the region: the game will not include microtransactions.
Speaking on Dropped Frames, Pearl Abyss marketing director Will Powers said the goal is a world you can simply enjoy without extra monetization systems intruding on the experience. “This is a game designed as a premium experience that you buy and enjoy, not something based on microtransactions.” – Powers said, stressing the studio’s commitment to delivering a complete package at launch.
Multiplayer Was Considered for Crimson Desert, and It Could Still Happen
At the same time, the studio has signaled that its longer-term ambitions may extend beyond what ships on day one – even though Crimson Desert entered its gold phase in January, meaning the release version is effectively finalized. In a fiscal report covering the four-month period that ended in December, Pearl Abyss noted it had explored adding a multiplayer mode, either cooperative or competitive, but ultimately did not implement it.
However, the same report says the company plans to add that kind of mode if the game posts strong sales. For now, there is no clarity on what form the online component would take, and it remains uncertain how feasible it would be to integrate months after launch given the complexity of doing so. Still, it is worth noting that Crimson Desert originally began life as an MMO, closely threaded to the legacy of Black Desert, so the idea is not completely out of left field.
The release date itself is locked in: Crimson Desert launches on March 19, 2026 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, and it is positioned as a full open-world experience from day one, without microtransaction pressure.
Source: 3DJuegos
