Crimson Desert: 6 Days to Launch—PS5 Pro Shines, PC Gamers Cry Foul
Console gamers can finally breathe easy. PC players? Not so much. In just a few hours, Crimson Desert gave PS5 Pro fans their first real reason to hope—and handed Steam users their worst nightmare in three syllables: De-nu-vo.
With six days left before Crimson Desert drops on PC, PS5, and Xbox (March 19), yesterday was a wild ride. Digital Foundry dropped a glowing technical breakdown of the PS5 Pro version, showing off the console’s upgraded PSSR tech. Meanwhile, the game’s Steam page quietly revealed Denuvo DRM, instantly setting off a firestorm among PC gamers.
Image credit: Pearl Abyss
Console gameplay at last: Digital Foundry breaks down the PS5 Pro
Until yesterday, no one had seen Crimson Desert running on a console—not a single second of gameplay on PS5 or Xbox. With launch just six days away, that silence had everyone nervous—the ghost of Cyberpunk 2077’s disastrous console debut haunted every forum thread. But Pearl Abyss finally let Digital Foundry in for a full, no-holds-barred analysis of the PS5 Pro build.
Richard Leadbetter, Digital Foundry’s head honcho, summed it up: “My main concern wasn’t really the graphics, but the CPU demands. Sure, it can be taxing, but overall performance across all three modes is impressive.” His colleague John Linneman went even further, calling Crimson Desert “without a doubt, one of the most impressive open-world experiences I’ve ever had.” High praise from analysts who scrutinize every single frame for a living.
Three visual modes, rock-solid performance
The PS5 Pro offers three distinct setups. Optimal (or Performance) mode runs at 1080p upscaled via PSSR at 60 frames per second. Balanced mode bumps it up to 1440p upscaled for 40 fps—a sweet spot that’s catching on fast. And Quality mode? Native 4K at 30 fps with “ultra” ray tracing.
The results are reassuring. According to Digital Foundry, both Balanced and Quality modes hit their target framerates almost perfectly, with no major drops. The 60 fps mode also delivers in most scenarios, though it can dip to 30–40 fps during massive battles with tons of NPCs. Linneman notes these moments are “definitely not the norm.” Digital Foundry recommends sticking with 60 fps or 40 fps modes, since the 30 fps Quality mode, while gorgeous, feels less responsive.
What about standard PS5 and Xbox?
Digital Foundry’s analysis only covers the PS5 Pro, so caution is warranted. The standard PS5 will offer similar modes but with scaled-back ray tracing, capped at 1440p. If the Pro can hold a steady 30 fps at native 4K with maxed-out ray tracing, it’s reasonable to expect the base PS5 and Xbox Series X will manage 30 fps at 1440p with reduced effects.
Reasonable, but not guaranteed. Pearl Abyss—best known for Black Desert Online—is making its first foray into open-world single-player RPGs. Console optimization is a whole different beast, and with Sony already prepping the PS6 for late 2027, the PS5 Pro is the perfect showcase. For the standard PS5 and Xbox, we’ll have to wait until March 19.
The dark side: Denuvo hits PC at the last minute
While console players breathed a sigh of relief, the PC community was left gasping for a whole different reason. Yesterday, Crimson Desert’s Steam page was quietly updated with a bombshell: “Incorporates 3rd-party DRM: Denuvo Anti-tamper. 5 different PC within a day machine activation limit.” That means the most controversial anti-piracy software out there, plus a five-activations-per-day limit across different machines.
The backlash was instant. On Reddit, a thread racked up over 3,200 upvotes as PC gamers vented their fury. “A really scummy move to add Denuvo at the last minute,” summed up one Steam user. “Denuvo a week before launch. Glad I waited to buy—saved me some cash,” chimed in another. Over on r/pcgaming, the mood was just as salty: “Removed from my wishlist. I refuse to ask permission to play something I paid for.”
users on Reddit,
by u/ in r/pcgaming
Facing the uproar, Pearl Abyss responded: “All benchmark videos and published performance specs were made with exactly the same Denuvo implementation as the final release. This includes Digital Foundry’s performance videos.” The studio is trying to calm fears about performance hits, but the timing—a week before launch, after preorders have rolled in—leaves a bitter taste. Denuvo doesn’t always tank performance, but even the company’s own reps have admitted it can cause issues in some cases.
It’s a wild paradox: console players are finally seeing promising PS5 Pro performance, while PC gamers are left with a fresh wave of uncertainty just days before launch. Independent reviews—available only 24 hours before release, and only on PC—will be crucial. March 19 is coming fast, and Crimson Desert has never been more divisive.
