Pearl Abyss: We were offered an exclusive contract for Crimson Desert by Sony but refused

[Puff]

Pearl Abyss at Kiwoom Securities Corporate Day event

• Adding various features to the open world caused a lot of delays in development.
• The games that Chairman Kim Dae-il considers his favorite are Red Dead Redemption and The Legend of Zelda: We made efforts to implement a high degree of freedom in the game by referencing various games such as Assassin's Creed, The Witcher 3, Red Dead Redemption, and The Legend of Zelda.
• We utilize our own Engine which gives us a special advantage in this area.
• Interactivity with NPCs and the natural environment was a big focus for us.
• Game elements were designed to enable diverse interactions, such as utilizing AI to have NPC AI make situational judgements to enable interaction in a variety of ways.
• For example, running away from a battle based on the level or number of people.
• There is also a reputation system in the game that changes depending on your actions. While many people like to play games where the protagonist is the hero, Red Desert has elements that make you either a hero or a villain depending on your actions.
• Assassin's Creed gives you the freedom to climb on and over everything in sight. The Legend of Zelda has an even greater sense of spatial freedom, not only on the ground but also in the air with gliding. You'll see all of those things in our game.
• We also worked hard to implement detailed changes in the characters according to changes in temperature and time of day. We implemented changes in behavior based on the time of day and temperature differences, such as the character's actions slowing down when the temperature drops or at night. There are limitations in implementing such details when using commercial engines such as Unreal Engine 5.
• Sony offered us an exclusivity deal (which would have prohibited us from releasing the game on Xbox for a certain period of time), but we decided to self-publish the game because we thought it would be more profitable.
• The game that was heavily referenced during the initial production was The Witcher 3, and some parts of the story were also referenced.
• Sony evaluated that the game's atmosphere and story are similar to Ghost of Tsushima, which sold over 10 million copies.

 

[VillaiN]

It ll be interesting to see their sales on xbox and performance on series S.

 

[Gods&Monsters]

Something is wrong when third-parties think releasing on Xbox is more profitable than getting an exclusive Sony contract with full marketing support.

The writing is on the wall.

 

[AnimePanda]

Something is wrong when third-parties think releasing on Xbox is more profitable than getting an exclusive Sony contract with full marketing support.

The writing is on the wall.

yep u can mark it now they wil lcry about not hitting its target also its a mmo/ it has a singleplayer but dont look to much into that singleplayer this game legit a mmo game and mmos dont do well on xbox look at ff14 for example. Now whe nthey come crawling back sony will low ball them... next game they should be working on would be DokeV but that game got announced like what 10 years ago lol

 

[AnimePanda]

yep u can mark it now they wil lcry about not hitting its target also its a mmo/ it has a singleplayer but dont look to much into that singleplayer this game legit a mmo game and mmos dont do well on xbox look at ff14 for example. Now whe nthey come crawling back sony will low ball them... next game they should be working on would be DokeV but that game got announced like what 10 years ago lol

also they like to fill their games up with MTs soooo yeah dont hold out hope here.

 

[On Demand]

So those rumors were true.

Strange they said no. Exclusivity comes with development help and marketing. Which saves the developer money. So the more profitable by publishing yourself comment doesn’t make any sense really.

 

[MrAss]

So those rumors were true.

Strange they said no. Exclusivity comes with development help and marketing. Which saves the developer money. So the more profitable by publishing yourself comment doesn’t make any sense really.

Probably wanted more money than Sony usually pays for this kind of deals

 

[quest4441]

Good for them, Seems like they know their value.

 

[Sloane_Ranger]

yep u can mark it now they wil lcry about not hitting its target also its a mmo/ it has a singleplayer but dont look to much into that singleplayer this game legit a mmo game and mmos dont do well on xbox look at ff14 for example. Now whe nthey come crawling back sony will low ball them... next game they should be working on would be DokeV but that game got announced like what 10 years ago lol

Not disagreeing with your comment, in fact I agree - just letting you know that this game is NOT a MMO. Pearl Abyss did make Black Desert which is a MMO, however the new game is not. https://www.pcgamer.com/crimson-desert-release-date-trailer-online-gameplay/

 

[Cool hand luke]

If Sony was willing to offer cash for this it must be good. Opposite of the gamepass kiss of death

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

Well seeing how SIE are treating their own IP going forward when it comes to exclusivity it shouldn't be surprising that more 3P will turn down timed exclusivity deals from them that exclude other platforms, even Xbox.

If the thought in SIE's multiplatform strategy is to maximize profit margins, and we're already seeing that with games like LEGO Horizon & Until Dawn going Day 1 on PC and even Nintendo (LEGO Horizon), and even faster ports to PC (Spiderman 2), why would 3P engage in exclusivity deals with PlayStation if SIE are moving away from exclusivity themselves?

SIE aren't leading by example so 3P aren't gonna follow the talk, they'll follow the walk. And that's a walk they've been increasingly doing of their own choice for years now, so who's really following who anymore here?

I've been saying it for a minute now, but SIE's multiplatform strategy is also going to heavily reduce the 3P exclusives they get going forward, too. There is a knock-on effect that will ripple out to other areas. It's almost as if Xbox served as a cautionary tale, yet SIE learned all the wrong lessons.

And now we might be entering a phase where the sustainability of PlayStation consoles as we've known it for the longest time, could be in jeopardy.

 

[Exicide]

Just saying, calling developers stupid for not taking an exclusivity contract is full of fanboy values. Acting like they won't sell unless its exclusive is even more fanboy rhetoric. They want to reach all players who can play the game, they don't listen to the "Xbox players don't buy games" garbage that floats around here. If that really was the case no game would come to Xbox and they would have died by now. Don't let your fanboy mentality cloud your judgment and blur the reality.

 

[Neversummer]

Lmao PS fucked up there entire business & it will slowly be diminished.

Why would a 3rd party ever accept an exclusivity deal from PS when PS themselves don’t even keep there games exclusive on PS. Unless PS funded 100% of the budget in that case Sony/PS just made it where exclusivity deal cost even more lol

3rd party will focus on PC/Steam & Nintendo going forward since those 2 platforms have tons of exclusive (true permanent exclusive) that drive there platforms & are ensure to stay here in the long run because them having many exclusive games from first party unavailable on other platforms

 

[ethomaz]

Probably wanted more money than Sony usually pays for this kind of deals

Exactly...

Sony deal was probably so small that just a few copies sold could had covered it.
I mean only big sharks receive big deals from Sony.

 

[Danja]

Why would anyone sign an exclusive offer with a Company who's own software sales are collapsing not to mention they don't even keep their own games exclusive anymore.

They will learn the hard way next gen, PS5 has no goodwill, but these ramifications always follows up in the next gen.

 

[AllBizness]

Funny, seeing as their last release was an Xbox timed exclusive in 2017 Black Desert.

 

[Neversummer]

You think developers/publishers aren’t looking at PS releasing remakes/remasters on PC day 1 & new games like Lego Horizon on PC & Nintendo Switch day 1, hell there studio saying stuff like we want to reach more players etc.

I’m telling you know Switch 2 will completely kill off PS exclusivity deal if Switch 2 is anywhere around PS4 power. Games like Stellar Blade could’ve launch day 1 on Switch 2 & the performance likely would’ve been that different to PS5

 

[ToTTenTranz]

Sony offered us an exclusivity deal (which would have prohibited us from releasing the game on Xbox for a certain period of time), but we decided to self-publish the game because we thought it would be more profitable.

This wasn't an exclusivity deal, it was a publishing deal. Which usually does come with an exclusivity window, obviously.

There's more to publishing than just giving them money to delay the game on other platforms. It would mean Sony was taking care of marketing, for example.

 

[Entropi]

It's good for them for standing up to their principles instead of getting expert technical support and a marketing campaign. I’m sure Xbox fans make their game a hit on Xbox consoles.

 

[CrackmanNL]

Depends on what was offered but also requirements like the PS studios logo in exchange for XDev support and focus on PS5 version instead of PC like Shift-Up did. It's also not a dev that relies and asks for funding like S-Blade, they have over 1K staff and acquired Eve Online guys years back. So obviously more ambition, don't blame them.

Personally think Sony came too late since their trailers already got traction but Doke V is another one of theirs that got attention that has been missing for over 4 years. Assume they didn't wanna go crazy over an uncertain title but it would have fit nice in the gap of the portfolio. Not that the game is not coming out on PS5.