Crimson Desert is giving Damiane and Oongka a far bigger role in its Charting the Unknown DLC, with both set to share the lead with Kliff. Pearl Abyss is making all three playable heroes key parts of the tale, rather than leaving two of them as side acts.
The neat part is that each hero gets a separate plot. Will Powers, who works at Pearl Abyss, shared the details on the Dropped Frames podcast. Kliff, Damiane, and Oongka will each have a tale that stands alone, though players must beat the base campaign before they can start the new DLC plot.
And Oongka may have a lot going for him. Powers picked his epilogue as the one he likes most, which is a good sign for fans who felt the character got shortchanged. Damiane will get more room to grow as well, with deeper character work planned across all three arcs.
For context, the Enhanced version had already done a lot to fix Kliff's role. It also helped clean up the main plot, which had felt messy to some players. Yet Damiane and Oongka still lacked the same depth, despite being playable. This DLC aims to deal with that gap.
As for new stuff to do, the sea plays a big part. Players can head below the waves, seek out hidden spots, and take part in ship-boarding action. Storms will also bring huge waves, thanks to a new weather setup. The ocean may have a fair bit more to find than fans first thought.
Away from the water, the open world is getting fresh quests, extra tales, and more gear. Any of the three heroes can take part in the shared side content. NPCs across the game will have new ways to interact, while characters open to romance will get special quests and scenes.
One thing may be missing, though. New combat skills aren't a sure thing. The team has been wary of adding even more buttons and moves to a control scheme that already asks a lot from players. Plans may have shifted, but Powers did not lock in any fresh skills.
Pearl Abyss has kept a wild pace since launch, with patches landing each week and plenty of content added for free. That run of rapid updates is set to slow once this expansion lands. For a single-player RPG, the amount of care given to the base game has been pretty notable.
Money is not the issue, at least on paper. Crimson Desert has sold over 6 million copies and made $427 million in revenue. With that kind of result, more paid DLC seems plausible, though the studio has not made any firm pledge about a second expansion.
The neat part is that each hero gets a separate plot. Will Powers, who works at Pearl Abyss, shared the details on the Dropped Frames podcast. Kliff, Damiane, and Oongka will each have a tale that stands alone, though players must beat the base campaign before they can start the new DLC plot.
And Oongka may have a lot going for him. Powers picked his epilogue as the one he likes most, which is a good sign for fans who felt the character got shortchanged. Damiane will get more room to grow as well, with deeper character work planned across all three arcs.
For context, the Enhanced version had already done a lot to fix Kliff's role. It also helped clean up the main plot, which had felt messy to some players. Yet Damiane and Oongka still lacked the same depth, despite being playable. This DLC aims to deal with that gap.
As for new stuff to do, the sea plays a big part. Players can head below the waves, seek out hidden spots, and take part in ship-boarding action. Storms will also bring huge waves, thanks to a new weather setup. The ocean may have a fair bit more to find than fans first thought.
Away from the water, the open world is getting fresh quests, extra tales, and more gear. Any of the three heroes can take part in the shared side content. NPCs across the game will have new ways to interact, while characters open to romance will get special quests and scenes.
One thing may be missing, though. New combat skills aren't a sure thing. The team has been wary of adding even more buttons and moves to a control scheme that already asks a lot from players. Plans may have shifted, but Powers did not lock in any fresh skills.
Pearl Abyss has kept a wild pace since launch, with patches landing each week and plenty of content added for free. That run of rapid updates is set to slow once this expansion lands. For a single-player RPG, the amount of care given to the base game has been pretty notable.
Money is not the issue, at least on paper. Crimson Desert has sold over 6 million copies and made $427 million in revenue. With that kind of result, more paid DLC seems plausible, though the studio has not made any firm pledge about a second expansion.
