Shares of Pearl Abyss fell by nearly 30% after the first reviews of Crimson Desert were released.
Even before launch, Crimson Desert had gained over 3 million wishlist additions on Steam alone. However, after the reviews went live, the enthusiasm cooled somewhat, as the scores turned out to be mostly average.
While some critics praise the scale and ambition of the project, others complain about a weak story, clunky controls, interface issues, and various technical problems. At the time of writing, Crimson Desert holds a score of 78 on Metacritic and 80 on OpenCritic. Market expectations had been significantly higher, around the 85–89 range.
Because the game did not meet critics’ expectations, the value of Pearl Abyss stock dropped sharply overnight. The company’s shares are currently down by 27.44%.
As a reminder, the reload mechanic change that everyone has already started hating.