A new Crimson Desert update rolled out on May 29 across every version of the game, with one exception. Identified by version number 1.09, this release introduces dozens of changes to Crimson Desert‘s controls, pets, skills, and animations, among other aspects of the hit game.
The hit open-world action adventure from South Korean studio Pearl Abyss has received nearly two dozen patches since its March 18 debut. Its most recent prior revision arrived on May 22, bumping Crimson Desert‘s version number to 1.08 and introducing a variety of content additions and changes. Update 1.09 marks the game’s 21st post-launch patch to date.
Crimson Desert Addresses Control Complaints with a Universal Fix
Headlining the new update is the ability to remap the game’s default controller button layout. The addition addresses numerous player grievances about Crimson Desert‘s overly complicated controls, which have been among the most frequent complaints from early adopters. While the ability to customize controls should spare future players that frustration, the feature arrived more than two months after launch, meaning some Crimson Desert veterans have already cleared the initial hurdle. “Too late for remapping now,” wrote one fan, adding that they had already spent 130 hours in the game and had grown used to the default control scheme that many players described as janky at best.
Crimson Desert Update 1.09 Patch Notes
Update Schedule (as of May 29, 2026)
- Steam (PC): Patch available now
- Steam (Mac): Patch available now
- PlayStation: Patch available now
- Xbox: Patch available now
- Epic Games Store: Patch available now
- Mac App Store: Patch available at a later time (in-progress)
New Additions
- Added a controller remapping feature.
- Added approximately 30 species of small animals that can be registered as pets.
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Added new skills for Oongka and Damiane.
- The input command for each skill is the same as Kliff’s “Blinding Flash Finisher”.(Heavy attack while using Blinding Flash)
- Added animations for picking up and putting down certain pets.
Major Content Improvements
- Fixed an issue where checking colors while dyeing and customizing characters was difficult depending on the surrounding light sources.
- Fixed an issue where legendary fish could be donated.
- Fixed an issue where, even after obtaining certain knowledge, some related challenges would not be completed.
- Fixed an issue where “Pond Management” mode could not be entered in certain situations.
- Fixed an issue where controls would become unresponsive if the character died after entering the “Pond Management” menu while taking damage.
- Fixed an issue where bears would try to eat fish dropped on the ground but fail to do so.
- As part of ongoing improvements, certain 2D visual assets have been replaced to better align with the game’s art direction.
Major Control Improvements
- Improved farming so that seeds can now be assigned to and used from quickslots.
- Fixed an issue where the player would enter Photo Mode while examining items.
- Fixed an issue where the “Magic Scythe” could not be used if the Inventory was full.
- Fixed an issue where the “Scythe” could not be used in safe zones.
- Fixed an issue where the “Mining Knuckledrill” could not be used while clinging to a wall.
Major Combat / Action Improvements
- [Kliff] Fixed an issue where using “Evasive Kick” while unarmed would not consume Spirit.
- [Kliff] Fixed an issue where “Blinding Flash Finisher” could be used even with insufficient Spirit.
- [Oongka] Adjusted the amount of stagger meter increase from “Quaking Fury”.
Major UI Improvements
- Improved the dispatch UI so that comrades with the missions’ required skills appear at the top.
- When carrying out a mission repeatedly, “Repeating Mission” now appears in the UI.
- [Keyboard/Mouse] The cursor now disappears when examining documents.
- Fixed an issue where the number of comrades would appear as 0 in the camp resources UI.
- Fixed an issue where the QTE input icon would not appear if certain input options were customized.
- Fixed an issue where the UI would freeze when re-entering the game after being returned to the title screen due to an error in certain situations.
- Fixed an issue where the “Clean” interaction input would appear even for fish that cannot be cleaned.
Major Graphics and Settings Improvements
- [PC] Fixed an issue where shadows of some distant objects were not rendered correctly when the “Raytraced Sun/Moon Light Shadows” option was enabled.
- [Mac] Fixed an issue where “Raytraced Sun/Moon Light Shadows” option was not being applied.
Major Localization Improvements
- Fixed various localization errors and improved localization quality across all languages.
Other Improvements
- Fixed an issue where audio would play when examining certain documents such as books and bounty notices, if the Voice Language was set to English.
- Fixed an issue where sound effects would not play when cooking with a special cooking tool.
- Fixed an issue where the game would occasionally crash when moving to the “Tree Branch” crafting recipe tab from the crafting UI.
- [Damiane] Fixed an issue where repeatedly hitting sanctum cores with element-imbued attacks would cause their effects to stack, dropping performance.
- [Damiane] Fixed unnatural animations when evading while falling from a high place.
- Fixed an issue where player landing animations would appear unnatural in certain situations.
- Fixed an issue where the animation for putting down a corpse would appear unnatural when interacting with something else while swimming with a corpse.
- Fixed an issue where the equipment would appear transparent when switching to another tool while a tool was drawn.
- Fixed an issue where the player’s equipment would switch to another weapon when attacking while certain tools were equipped.
- Released
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March 19, 2026
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ / Blood, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
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Pearl Abyss
- Publisher(s)
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Pearl Abyss
