Comments
When The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim released in 2011, its massive explorable world was something of a novelty. Though it was hardly the first open-world game, it did deliver a scope and depth that few gamers had yet to experience. The map’s size was impressive, but what really sold fans was the sheer amount of what you could encounter while exploring it. In the years since, open-world has become a staple part of marketing new games. Many developers want players to know up front that they’ll have the freedom to roam. But promising a big open world in and of itself is no longer a selling point for many gamers.
Over the years, gamers have been burned by vast but empty open worlds. Who can forget roaming Paldea in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, wondering what we’re meant to find there? Clearly, just saying your open world will be massive doesn’t always impress like it used to. That’s clear in the case of the upcoming action-adventure game Crimson Desert, which recently teased a map “at least twice as big as the open world, the playable area, of Skyrim.” Rather than excite many fans, it seems to have many feeling worried instead. However, there’s more to the story.
Fans Worried About Crimson Desert’s Big Map Size Promise, But They Might Not Need to Be
The comments regarding the potential scope of Crimson Desert‘s open world come from the New Game+ Showcase. The stream, which aired on January 8th, featured game trailers alongside more in-depth interviews with developers. An exclusive interview with the team behind Crimson Desert, one of this year’s most anticipated new RPGs, was one of the new showcase’s big selling points. But in the days following the interview, one comment is taking center stage as gamers debate whether the promise of a big open world is actually a good thing.
Early in his conversation with the New Game+ Showcase team, Pearl Abyss Director of Public Relations Will Powers was directly asked to speak to the size of the game. During his response, he described the map size in contrast to popular RPGs like Skyrim and Red Dead Redemption 2. Specifically, he said it would be bigger than both of them, by a lot. And it’s this comment that has begun making the rounds on social media, as players worry that Crimson Desert might be yet another game with a wide world full of, well, basically nothing.
Comment
byu/Turbostrider27 from discussion
inPS5
Read Next Crimson Desert Feels Like A More Mature Version of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
In response to a Reddit thread sparked by IGN‘s coverage of the interview, many gamers are expressing their frustration with the focus on size when it comes to open-world games. “It could be 100 times as big, but if you don’t fill it with content it’s going to be worthless,” says one response. The phrase “wide as an ocean, deep as a puddle” is getting thrown around a lot. But not everyone is ready to dismiss Crimson Desert because of this one comment.
In fact, Powers himself did immediately address this exact concern in the very same interview. Just after giving a sense of the scope of the game’s playable open-world, he added, “But size doesn’t really matter if there’s nothing to do.” He goes on to describe the mission of Crimson Desert as delivering a world that’s “not only massive, but is also incredibly interactive.” From the sounds of it, the developers are working hard to avoid the risk of giving players a big, boring world that won’t live up to the hype.
Crimson Desert is set to release on March 19th for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. It is one of this year’s most anticipated new action RPGs to date.
What do you think about open-world games with big maps? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the Forum!
5 Exciting New RPGs To Look Forward To In 2026 (And When to Expect Them)
