Pearl Abyss Planning Crimson Desert DLC After Massive Launch Success
Crimson Desert sold 5 million copies and brought in $178.8 million in its first two weeks. Pearl Abyss confirms DLC plans are in the works.
Pearl Abyss dropped its Q1 2026 financials, showing exactly how much Crimson Desert made and confirming DLC is coming.
The single-player open world fantasy action game moved 5 million copies since launching March 19. Pearl Abyss' Q1 report only covers through end of March, meaning these numbers represent roughly two weeks of sales.
Crimson Desert pulled in KRW 266.5 billion (about $178.8 million) by end of March. Console and PC split nearly even at 50:50. Pearl Abyss notes console revenue gets calculated after platform fees (the typical 30% cut Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo take), while PC revenue accounts for taxes on user payments. (Steam also takes its cut on all platform sales.) North America and Europe drove over 80% of sales. Western audiences ate this game up.Pearl Abyss projects full-year 2026 revenue from Crimson Desert between KRW 644.1~734.8 billion (about $432.2 million~$514.4 million). Hit the high end of that estimate and the game crosses half a billion dollars.
Q2 revenue will "soften," Pearl Abyss says, since launch sales are front-loaded. But the company expects "stable performance" thanks to continuous patches and updates. Pearl Abyss has been shipping game-changing updates nearly every week since launch.
Labor expenses will more than double in Q2 due to performance bonuses Pearl Abyss announced after Crimson Desert's success. The company employs 1,024 people, though that number will dip slightly as contractors brought on for launch wrap up.
The real question: what's next? The updates have massively improved the game since launch, but will Pearl Abyss deliver actual DLC or story expansions? The financial report teases yes.
"New Pipelines and Growth Strategy Crimson Desert will continue to focus on enhancing user satisfaction and driving new sales through continuous updates, while expanding its market presence through platform expansion," Pearl Abyss said. "In addition, we are currently exploring various ways to broaden the game to the next level including DLC. We will share the details once the concrete plans are set."
What's the DLC? Players clipping out of bounds found unused content scattered across the map. There's also Sunbaked Peaks to the east, a named area currently unreachable. Story expansion could open that up.