Crimson Desert Gameplay Unveiled for PS5 Pro Only

Crimson Desert is set to launch next week on March 19, and the excitement surrounding this RPG has reached a fever pitch. Until now, however, we hadn’t seen any console gameplay, but that changes today with a new video showcasing the PS5 Pro version.

If you’ve been following the gaming scene lately, you’ve probably noticed the buzz around the stunning open-world action RPG, Crimson Desert. With its expansive world, a wealth of gameplay features, and impressive graphics, it has the potential to be one of the standout titles of 2026. Fans were understandably anxious since we hadn’t seen the game running on a console until now, especially with the announcement that reviews would only be available 24 hours before launch and that reviewers had access solely to the PC version. So, the release of console gameplay footage on Thursday was a welcome relief for eager fans. However, it’s worth noting that this footage is from the PS5 Pro, not the standard PS5.

On March 12, a detailed video and article were released focusing on Crimson Desert’s performance on the PS5 Pro, and the news is largely positive.

The game shines in all three visual modes—optimal, balanced, and quality—with optimal being the performance-oriented choice. While some PSSR upscaling artifacts can detract from the visuals, there’s optimism that the final version will improve, leveraging the enhanced PSSR seen in Resident Evil Requiem.

In terms of framerate, it appears that all three modes maintain their target framerates quite well, including the 60FPS “optimal” mode. However, there can be significant drops during intense battles, though it was clarified that these instances are not typical. The recommendation for PS5 Pro players is to stick with the 60FPS or 40FPS (balanced) modes, as the 30FPS quality mode felt less responsive.

Richard Leadbetter from Digital Foundry shared, “We haven’t seen much of Crimson Desert on consoles. But when Pearl Abyss gave us the opportunity to explore the PS5 Pro version without restrictions, we jumped at it. My main concern was the CPU demands. While it can be taxing, the overall performance across the three modes is impressive. What stands out even more is the game’s scale, scope, and systems-driven open world. The high-end PC experience translates well to the PS5 Pro, and we’re eager to see how it performs on other consoles.”

At this point, it seems Crimson Desert won’t be an unoptimized disaster on consoles. While we still need to see how it runs on the base PS5 and Xbox, fans can at least feel a bit more at ease as anticipation for Crimson Desert continues to build ahead of its launch next week.