Crimson Desert, developed by Pearl Abyss, has been drawing attention for its breathtaking visuals—and with good reason. Console players have understandably been cautious, remembering the rocky launch of Cyberpunk 2077. Early PS5 Pro footage, however, looks very promising.
Console performance options
According to a deep dive by Digital Foundry, the PS5 Pro version offers three visual modes:
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Performance – Upscaled 1080p at 60fps
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Balanced – Upscaled 1440p at 40fps
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Quality – Native 4K at 30fps
Analysis by John Linneman notes that Balanced and Quality modes hit their frame rate targets almost flawlessly, while Performance mode generally maintains 60fps, though large battles can see dips to 30–40fps.
PC gamers’ new concern
While console players can be cautiously optimistic, Steam users are facing a different issue: the game will include Denuvo DRM, which could impact performance and modding flexibility for PC players.
Crimson Desert is shaping up visually and technically on consoles, but PC gamers will want to keep an eye on how the DRM affects gameplay when the game launches. 
