Someone, please tell me what's going on in Pywel? After 170 hours exploring this world, I feel like I'm still none-the-wiser as to what the Abyss actually is or why Kliff was brought back to life just to arm wrestle strangers in random taverns. It is becoming increasingly obvious that many players are just as lost as I am when it comes to Crimson Desert's story.

The moment I knew Kliff was built different was when he barely reacted to being transported to a secret realm in the sky, only to proceed to base jump 10,000 feet because a stranger told him he had wings. Kliff is essentially the goldfish of RPG protagonists—the abyss is unbalanced and he has to save Pywel from a sinister scheme... or is that a pet bird? Perhaps that lack of focus is exactly what makes him the perfect protagonist for this player base.

The Disparity in Crimson Desert's Story Completion

The statistics indicate that players clearly prefer side distractions over the main narrative. I put a monumental 100 hours into the game before its release, finishing Chapter 7 along with a massive list of other activities. This chapter marks the halfway point where you leave Pailune and Hernand for the other regions and the eponymous Crimson Desert.

I was convinced that gamers would catch up to my progress in no time. However, five weeks after launch, just over a fifth of players have completed Chapter 7. Specifically, only 21.2% of players have reached that point according to Steam achievements. I guide games for a living, but I don't think I've ever seen such a gaping disparity between the number of people playing and those actually engaging with Crimson Desert's story.

Why Players Prefer Side Content Over Narrative

It is understandable why players are avoiding the main plot. The narrative currently feels below average relative to the game's popularity; Kliff has the personality of a root vegetable, boss designs can feel like a chore, and quests often focus more on tutorialising mechanics than developing characters. It is easy to see that Pearl Abyss is an MMO developer at heart.

However, the world itself is undoubtedly compelling. It offers an almost immersive-sim style sandbox filled with things to find, kill, and master. Players are choosing to lose themselves in these activities instead:

  • Hunting legendary animals
  • Finding OP weapons and weird gadgets
  • Completing mundane tasks, from buying pots to fixing spinning wheels
  • Utilising the new bird taming feature

I can see myself chewing on this game for a long time, especially during a relatively quiet release year. Pearl Abyss is effectively building the game while it's flying, adding massive quality-of-life improvements and revamping features at a ridiculous pace.

While launching a game that requires so many tweaks isn't ideal, the world is already vastly improved from my pre-launch experience. It is easy to see why players prefer losing themselves in shiny new distractions rather than slogging through a lackluster narrative.