If you’ve followed Pearl Abyss’s development slate since the massive success of Black Desert Online, you’ve probably had Crimson Desert on your radar for years. The gritty, open-world fantasy MMO promises to blend immersive single-player storytelling with the chaotic PvP and deep customization the studio is known for, and player hype has hit a fever pitch as we get closer to launch. One of the most common questions floating around fan forums and social media right now is will crimson desert be on Steam, and we’ve pulled together every confirmed detail, industry trend, and official hint to answer that question for you.
What We Know About Whether Crimson Desert Will Be on Steam
As of the latest official updates from Pearl Abyss, the studio has not explicitly named Steam as a day-one launch platform for Crimson Desert. That doesn’t mean it’s off the table, though. Pearl Abyss has a track record of supporting Steam for its long-term PC releases, with Black Desert Online launching on the platform three years after its initial standalone PC release and maintaining a thriving player base there ever since. The studio has publicly stated it plans to release Crimson Desert on all major PC storefronts to reach as many global players as possible, which makes Steam a near-certain addition to the platform list down the line. The only confirmed day-one PC platform right now is the official Pearl Abyss standalone launcher, which will be available for pre-load a week before launch for players who pre-order directly from the studio.
Reasons Crimson Desert Will Almost Certainly Launch on Steam
There are very few logical reasons for Pearl Abyss to skip Steam entirely for Crimson Desert, and a whole host of benefits that make the partnership a no-brainer. First, Steam controls over 75% of the global PC game storefront market, with especially strong dominance in North America and Western Europe, two key markets for Crimson Desert’s launch. Many MMO players prefer to keep all their game libraries in one place on Steam, and will often pass on new releases that are only available on third-party launchers to avoid having to juggle multiple accounts and login credentials. The list of specific benefits for Pearl Abyss to release on Steam includes:
Pearl Abyss has already invested heavily in building a positive working relationship with Valve over the past decade, and has run dozens of successful sales, events, and content updates for its existing Steam library. There’s no sign that relationship has soured, so a Steam release for Crimson Desert is really just a matter of when, not if.
What to Do If You Want to Play Crimson Desert on Steam at Launch
If your main goal is to own Crimson Desert on Steam, there are a few simple steps you can take to make sure you get access as soon as possible, and avoid common mistakes that players make when waiting for a game to hit the platform. First, don’t pre-order the game directly from the Pearl Abyss store if you only want a Steam copy, as studio purchase licenses can’t be transferred to Steam after you buy. You can wishlist the game on Steam as soon as its store page goes live to get notified the second it's available for purchase or pre-order, so you won’t miss the launch window. Never buy a third-party Steam key for Crimson Desert before the official store page goes live, as these are almost always scams designed to steal your money or personal information. If you don’t mind waiting a few extra weeks after the initial launch for the Steam release, you may also get access to exclusive Steam-specific cosmetic items or a small launch discount, which is a common perk for MMOs that port to the platform after their initial standalone release. If you’re too excited to wait, you can always pick up the standalone version first, then pick up the Steam version later if you want to move your library, as cross-save support will work across all PC versions of the game.
Other PC Platforms You Can Play Crimson Desert On
Even if you have to wait a little while for the Steam release, you have other options to play Crimson Desert on PC as soon as it launches. The official Pearl Abyss standalone launcher will be available day one, and will support cross-save and cross-play with PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of the game if you pick up a console copy later. The standalone launcher version will get all updates and patches at the same time as any Steam release, so you won't miss out on content if you go that route. There are also unconfirmed rumors that the game may come to the Epic Games Store a few months after launch, but Pearl Abyss has not commented on those reports as of now. Keep in mind that Crimson Desert will only support Windows 10 and 11, with no plans for a Windows 7 or 8 release, and you will need a fairly powerful PC to run it on higher settings, thanks to its upgraded next-gen engine that supports photorealistic graphics, dynamic weather, and thousands of concurrent players on a single server. If you’re worried about account security, both the standalone and Steam versions of the game will support two-factor authentication, and your progress will be stored on Pearl Abyss’s cloud servers regardless of which platform you buy from.
At the end of the day, even if we don’t have a formal, stamped confirmation from Pearl Abyss or Valve yet, all signs point to yes when it comes to will crimson desert be on steam. The studio has every incentive to bring the game to the world’s largest PC storefront, and has a long track record of doing exactly that for all its most popular titles. If you’re flexible, you can grab the standalone version day one to get early access perks and jump into the action right away, or wait a little while for the Steam release to keep all your games in one place. Either way, Crimson Desert is shaping up to be one of the most exciting MMO releases in years, with enough content to keep players occupied for hundreds of hours after launch.