Pearl Abyss Confirms Crimson Desert Won’t Have Microtransactions

Will Powers, Director of Marketing at Pearl Abyss, has revealed that the upcoming Crimson Desert will not feature microtransactions, noting it’s a premium experience and therefore the only purchase you’ll be making is buying the gam itself.

Speaking on the weekly Dropped Frames talk show, Powers commented, “This is made to be a premium experience that you buy and you enjoy the world and not something for microtransactions.”

Pearl Abyss had previously shared a new trailer for Crimson Desert earlier this month, which detailed the game’s combat system and skill progression. Prior to that, the studio announced that the upcoming MMORPG had gone gold ahead of its planned release on March 19, 2026, bringing to an end a lengthy development cycle.

Crimson Desert’s narrative follows Greymanes Kliff, Oongka, Yann, and Naira, during a period where Pywel is experiencing great tension and conflict among its people. This already fragile period is disrupted further by an attack by the Black Bears, a rival faction to the Greymanes, killing many of its members. In the aftermath, Kliff and the survivors are scattered, and so it’s up to him to reunite with his comrades and rebuild the Greymanes, before confronting the Myurdin, the leader of the Black Bears.

Crimson Desert is scheduled to launch for PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X/S on March 19.

[Source – Dropped Frames with Will Powers via KAMI on X]