Pearl Abyss has officially confirmed that its upcoming open-world action-adventure title, Crimson Desert has gone gold, meaning development is complete and the game is now locked in for manufacturing and launch preparation.
The announcement was shared directly on Twitter/X, with the developer thanking fans worldwide and reaffirming the game’s release date:
We’re thrilled to announce that #CrimsonDesert has gone gold! On behalf of the team at Pearl Abyss, thank you to our fans around the world for your support and for reaching this milestone with us. Stay tuned for more news, and see you in Pywel on March 19!
This is a major milestone for one of 2026’s most talked-about upcoming releases, and it signals that Pearl Abyss is confident heading into the final stretch. For players who have been following the game’s long road to release, going gold is about as close as it gets to a victory lap before launch day.
Seriously, the scope of this game is just amazing. We’re talking about a game that just might be larger than Red Dead Redemption 2, and yes, even Elden Ring, with some amazing combat, not to mention the shear number of things you can do in the world. If I hadn’t played the game for myself, I wouldn’t have believed it. But when you get hands-on and the person hands you the controller and says, “Anything that you can see, you can go to”, it really makes you a believer.
And we’ve been keeping a close eye on Crimson Desert for quite some time. We previously shared our impressions from the game’s showing during Summer Game Fest 2025, where it immediately stood out thanks to its scale, combat ambitions, and overall presentation.
If you missed it, you can check out our full preview here: https://www.theouterhaven.net/crimson-desert-preview-sgf-2025/
We also had a separate hands-on PC preview that dives deeper into gameplay and technical impressions: https://www.theouterhaven.net/crimson-desert-hands-on-pc-preview/
Not to mention I got to see the game in action recently during CES 2026. Now, while I didn’t do a write up of it, it looks and plays amazingly. Of course, there’s little doubt that Pearl Abyss has tweaked the game to look and perform better. Which we’ll all get to see in just under two months.
With the release window now locked in, it’s no surprise that Crimson Desert landed on our list of the most anticipated games of 2026: https://www.theouterhaven.net/anticipated-games-of-2026/
With March 19, 2026, approaching fast, expect plenty more coverage as Pearl Abyss reveals the final details leading into launch. And we know there’s a certain member on our team that will finally stop nagging us about the game, and finally get to sit down and play it, possibly going crazy in the process.
Source: Pearl Abyss Official Twitter/X
