{"id":70627,"date":"2026-03-04T14:30:01","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T14:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.xtremeservers.com\/blog\/crimson-desert-hands-on-report-four-hours-in-the-rpgs-massive-open-world\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T14:30:01","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T14:30:01","slug":"crimson-desert-hands-on-report-four-hours-in-the-rpgs-massive-open-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.xtremeservers.com\/blog\/crimson-desert-hands-on-report-four-hours-in-the-rpgs-massive-open-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Crimson Desert hands-on report: four hours in the RPG\u2019s massive open world"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Crimson Desert<\/a> seems huge<\/em> \u2014 not just in how much there is to do, but simply how enormous its world is. As an open-world RPG, that\u2019s to be expected, but it\u2019s only when you\u2019re standing on a strange island floating in the sky, seeing the whole world stretch out beneath you, that it\u2019s clear just<\/em> how expansive the world of Pywel really is.<\/p>\n

Helping out in Hernand<\/h2>\n

You play Kliff, a member of a faction called the Greymanes \u2014 warriors renowned for their swordsmanship and their reputation for helping others. The early part of the story takes place in a town called Hernand, where you get your first taste of just how big and bustling Crimson Desert is. Even with four hours of playtime, there was so much to do in and around Hernand that I never made it far from town.<\/p>\n

Fast, fluid combat<\/h2>\n

Fighting in Crimson Desert is a fast-paced, intense affair, with smart enemies who constantly work to surround and overwhelm you. Luckily, you\u2019re a well-trained swordsman with quite a few abilities. Kliff can chain together fast strikes with R1 and slower, more powerful slashes with R2, but he\u2019s also strong enough to grab enemies and throw them when you press Circle and Triangle buttons together.<\/p>\n