Crimson Desert developer says microtransactions have won

• Pearl Abyss confirmed that Crimson Desert will not feature microtransactions
• The RPG will not have a cosmetic cash shop because it is “a premium experience”
• Will Powers, director of marketing at Pearl Abyss America, says it won’t offer the ‘monetization model’ of free-to-play games

Crimson Desert Developer Pearl Abyss has confirmed that the upcoming open-world role-playing game (RPG) will not feature microtransactions or a cosmetic store.

The $69.99 game has been in development for a while and is finally expected to launch next month. Based on the trailers and gameplay trailers we’ve seen, this seems like a pretty ambitious game, but the South Korean studio has promised that it won’t offer any paid add-ons or microtransactions in the game.

“I can say this for sure: There is no cosmetics store,” Will Powers, director of marketing at Pearl Abyss America, confirmed in an interview with Dropped Frames.

“This is a premium experience that you buy and enjoy the world, not something for microtransactions.

“It’s a monetization model. If you play for free, you have to generate revenue in a different way. This is a premium experience. This is the transaction. Period.”

This suggests that the game won’t even offer optional, paid add-ons for character costumes, mounts, or in-game currency that could be used to purchase resources.

Pearl Abyss is best known for its popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG). Black Desert Onlinea game filled with microtransactions, so that’s good to hear Crimson Desert will not fall into the same trap as some action-adventure games in recent years.

Games like Dragon’s Dogma 2another fantasy RPG with online features and a single-player narrative campaign, also featured microtransactions and received negative feedback from players. There is also Ubisoft, known for including them in its Assassin’s Creed games.

Crimson Desert will launch on March 19 on PS5, Xbox Series X and Series S and PC. The takes place in a fantasy world of Pywel and follows a lone mercenary, Kliff, who must “restore what was lost.” It offers the player choices that will influence the story, challenging enemy encounters, cities to explore, a range of weapons, secrets to discover and much more.

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Demi is a freelance gaming journalist for TechRadar Gaming. She has been a games editor for five years and has written for outlets including GameSpot, NME and GamesRadar, covering news, features and reviews. Aside from writing, she plays a lot of role-playing games and talks way too much about Star Wars on X.