Crimson Desert Is Out Soon: Here’s What Comes in Each Edition

Crimson Desert is an open-world action-adventure game that’s set to release on PS5, Xbox, and PC on Thursday, March 19. Developed by Pearl Abyss, the company behind Black Desert Online, it looks seriously ambitious in all the best ways. It’s available for preorder now (see it at Amazon) in two editions and includes a preorder bonus, the contents of which are detailed below. Let’s take a look.

Crimson Desert Standard Edition

PS5

Xbox

Get it at Fanatical (Steam) - $59.49
Get it at GMG (Steam) - $59.49
Get it at Steam - $69.99
Get it at Epic - $69.99

The standard edition comes with the game, plus the preorder bonus you can find detailed below (it’s an in-game shield). The only current deals available for the game are for the PC (Steam) version, which you can find at the third-party storefronts listed above.

Crimson Desert Deluxe Edition (Physical)

PS5

Xbox

Physical copies of the deluxe edition of Crimson Desert are nearly entirely sold out at the time of the writing (only the Xbox version is available at Amazon). If you can get your hands on it, however, it comes with the game, the preorder bonus, as well as the following items:

Physical Items

Deluxe Edition Box
Deluxe Edition Limited Edition Steelbook
Letter from the Developer
Greymane Brooch Pin
3 Character Photo Cards
3 Patches
Map of Pywel

Digital Items

Kairos Plate Set: Kairos Plate Helm, Kairos Plate Gloves, Kairos Plate Boots, Kairos Cloak, Kairos Plate Armor
Balgran Shield
Exclaire Horse Set: Exclaire Champron, Exclaire Barding, Exclaire Saddle, Exclaire Stirrups

Crimson Desert Deluxe Edition (Digital)

Digital Copy - $79.99

PS5: PS Store
Xbox: Xbox Store
PC: Fanatical ($67.99) | GMG ($67.99) | Steam | Epic

The digital deluxe edition of the game costs $10 less than the physical version, but it lacks the physical goodies. Fanatical and GMG have the Steam PC version on sale as well. Here are the digital items it includes:

Kairos Plate Set: Kairos Plate Helm, Kairos Plate Gloves, Kairos Plate Boots, Kairos Cloak, Kairos Plate Armor
Balgran Shield
Exclaire Horse Set: Exclaire Champron, Exclaire Barding, Exclaire Saddle, Exclaire Stirrups

Crimson Desert Preorder Bonus

Preorder the game on any platform and in any edition, and you’ll receive the following digital item:

Khaled Shield

Preorder the PS5 version, and you’ll get the following digital items:

Grotevant Plate Set: Grotevan Plate Helm, Grotevan Plate Armor, along with Grotevan cloak, gloves, and boots

Crimson Desert Global Release Times

Want to know when you'll be able to play? Here's the list. For more info, check out the Crimson Desert release times.

Los Angeles: 3pm, March 19
Dallas: 5pm, March 19
New York: 6pm, March 19
Sao Paulo: 7pm, March 19
London: 10pm, March 19
Berlin: 11pm, March 19
Paris: 11pm, March 19
Cape Town: Midnight, March 19
Istanbul: 1am, March 20
Dubai: 2am, March 20
Singapore: 6am, March 20
Beijing: 6am, March 20
Seoul: 7am, March 20
Tokyo: 7am, March 20
Sydney: 9am, March 20

What Is Crimson Desert?

Crimson Desert 11 Minutes Of Brand New Gameplay Ign First

Crimson Desert is a medieval fantasy-themed game set in the land of Pywel, where you play as Kliff, captain of the Greymanes, as the ruthless Black Bear army executes a brutal attack that leaves the Greymane forces scattered. Your job is to explore the world to reunite with your comrades and rebuild what’s been lost. As you do so, you’ll forge new alliances and discover even more dangerous threats looming over the land.

The journey takes you through all sorts of environments, from plains to deserts to mountains. You can ride mounts ranging from horses to wolves and dragons. You even have a Zelda-style glider that lets you leap from mountain peaks and soar over the land.

Although there’s some debate on social media about whether Crimson Desert is an RPG, developer Pearl Abyss doesn’t label it as such. It calls Crimson Desert “an open-world action-adventure game.” That’s because it doesn’t have character leveling or experience points. You do expand your capabilities, but you do so by finding items in the open world, like in an action-adventure game like Zelda or a Metroid.

Based on the trailers, it does look like a hodgepodge of popular game elements. It has an extensive combat system, an explorable open world, puzzles, giant monsters to fight, and more. Here’s hoping the game is not too good to be true.