The latest update for Crimson Desert arrives, making a ton of improvements and bug fixes, while also adding some new content for fans to check out as well. Pearl Abyss has stayed very busy months after Crimson Desert originally launched, showcasing an impressive amount of support by releasing updates nearly on a weekly basis. That level of support has caught the attention of players, alongside a strong word of mouth that has helped propel Crimson Desert into one of the year’s most successful titles.
While Crimson Desert wasn’t a perfect game upon release, Pearl Abyss instead took note of how players were interacting with the game while taking important feedback about what worked and what didn’t. As a result, Crimson Desert has seen countless updates over the past months, fixing a lot of what fans didn’t like, while adding in tons of new content and quality of life improvements to make the game stronger as a whole. Crimson Desert‘s endgame was also a big focus, with new features like Re-blockade being added to give players more control over enemy spawns at various camps and outposts. The latest update may not be as exciting as that, but it does have a few important additions.
In terms of new content, the latest update for Crimson Desert has a few new things for players to check out. Specifically, Pearl Abyss has added a new Knowledge Category for Quests. It features 8 total subcategories to cover all the types of activities players can interact with, from factions, investigations, research, and Crimson Desert‘s main quests. Better yet, for players that have already progressed through the game, certain quest knowledge entries will be granted retroactively. Pearl Abyss also made further adjustments to the knowledge system, including that certain animals no longer need to be killed to acquire knowledge and instead can simply be picked up.
While the camera was one of the frustrating parts of the launch version of Crimson Desert, Pearl Abyss has continued to tweak and improve it over time. This latest update continues that trend with all new options being available for Lock-on Camera Rotation. Under Input from the in-game options, players can now select from Manual, semi-auto, and auto, replacing the previously basic enabled/disabled setting. When Manual is set, players still have full control of the camera, being the closest option to the previous “enabled” setting. Semi-auto lets players rotate the camera within a limited range. Auto takes the place of Disabled, preventing the camera from being rotated at all while locked on.
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Compared to previous updates, this one may not be quite as exciting, though no less important. Recent Crimson Desert updates have overhauled the economy and trading post mechanics while also adding new Wagon Workshops and a specific Trade section from the menu. In addition, one of the more frustrating bugs that would swap out Quick Slot menu items was finally fixed as well.
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There’s no denying that Crimson Desert is a big game. In fact, one of the knocks against the game when it first launched is that the narrative seemingly took a backseat to the amount of exploring one could do. While Pearl Abyss continues to improve certain story moments in the campaign, it seems many other players have gotten lost within the sheer size of the world, as new data indicates that only 9.7% of players on Steam have actually unlocked the achievement for finishing the campaign. Console players are slightly higher, though not by much, with 13% of Xbox players and 15.2% of PlayStation players earning the Expert Storyteller badge in Crimson Desert.
Crimson Desert Update 1.18.00 Patch Notes
Content
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Added “Quests” as a new knowledge category.
- The new category (consists) of 8 sub-categories: Main Quests, Faction Quests, Investigation Quests, Research Quests, Daily Life Quests, Guide, Archive Records, Constellations.
- Certain quest knowledge entries will be granted retroactively if the corresponding quest has already been completed.
- Changed the resource required for research from silvers to camp funds.
- Fixed an issue where high-value trade goods could be stacked and loaded in quantities of up to 100.
- Fixed an issue where merchants did not appear at trading stalls in certain situations.
- Changed the location of the item “Baker’s Note” from the quest “Haverson’s Request.”
- Improved the knowledge system so that knowledge of certain animals can be gained by picking them up, instead of killing them.
- Improved the wording of certain boss knowledge entries.
- Improved the stable so that horse gear can now be equipped there.
- Fixed an issue where the pensive statue would revert to its unrepaired state in certain situations while progressing through the quest at Jijeong Temple to repair the pensive statues.
- Improved the quest from Chapter 4. The Price of Knowledge > Mysterious Pot > Kiln Repair at the Kilnden Workshop, so that the broken pieces of the kiln can now be reattached using “Force Current.”
- Fixed an issue where the “Defeat the enemies around the cabin” submission did not appear near Cairn House.
- Improved the knowledge system so that the knowledge of “Mysterious Invitation” can be obatined after completing “Read the memory beneath Delesyia Castle.”
Controls
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Added new options for “Lock-on Camera Rotation”.
- “Lock-on Camera Rotation” under Input in the game setting now has three options: manual, semi-auto, auto., where as the previous options were enabled and disabled.
- Manual: When lock-on is enabled, you can rotate the camera using the right stick or mouse. (Previous setting: enabled)
- Semi-auto: when lock-on is enabled, you can rotate the camera using the right stick or mouse within a limited range.
- Auto: When lock-on is enabled, you cannot rotate the camera using the right stick or mouse. (Previous setting: disabled)
- Fixed an issue where you could not lock on to targets with a ranged weapon while riding a mount in certain situations.
- Fixed an issue where the quick slot arrow would move in an unnatural way.
Combat / Action
- Improved an issue where certain special mounts would get stuck when trying to cross low ledges.
- Fixed an issue where the player could not climb through windows even when there were no obstacles.
- Fixed an issue where Sir Catfish would repeatedly perform a specific action in the same location under certain circumstances.
UI
- Improved the map so that areas revealed by ringing the bell can be visually distinguished from areas explored directly.
Graphics / Settings
- Fixed an issue where indoor lighting effects were unstable in certain situations.
- Fixed an issue where the camera would jitter or shake when controlled in low-FPS conditions.
- Fixed an issue where rendering would appear corrupted when FSR Frame Generation or XeSS Frame Generation was enabled on certain low-end graphics cards, including GTX 1060.
Localization
- Fixed various localization errors and improved localization quality across all languages.
Others
- Fixed an issue where the game would occasionally return to the title screen when reviving at a revivival point.
- Fixed an issue where the voice-over for a help pop-up would also play at an increased speed while fast-forwarding through a cutscene.
- Fixed an issue where workers would not function properly after loading a save file.
- Fixed an issue where regular NPCs were placed in blockaded areas.
- Fixed an issue where the animation of a character riding a mount would appear abnormal.
- Fixed an issue where the character would occasionally enter the broken abyss loop in the Abyss Skyloop Bridge.
- Fixed an issue where the time-lapse effect would not be applied after using Focus Mode.
- Fixed an issue where certain equipment would appear to clip through the character.
- Fixed an issue where Aeserion’s movements appeared abnormal.
- Fixed an issue where progression was blocked if the player switched to Oongka before meeting Torstein during “Time to Face Justice.”
- Fixed an issue where multiple oil canisters could be equipped in the same slot when operating the heater.
- Fixed an issue where a shield would be displayed when “Preview Only Selected” was enabled in shops or dyehouses after equipping dual-wielded weapons.
- Fixed an issue where the sound effects of Abyss Gear skills would play even when their volumne was set to 0.
- 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
