During the Game Developers Conference 2025 (short: GDC), the developers of Crimson Desert presented the “BlackSpace” engine in more detail. For those who love beautiful water effects, the new RPG from the creators of Black Desert has a lot to offer.
How good is the graphics of Crimson Desert? It has been clear since Black Desert that the designers at Pearl Abyss can create beautiful game worlds. A few years ago, the MMORPG was even awarded by the MeinMMO community as the genre representative with the best graphics.
The previous trailers of the new RPG Crimson Desert also show lively cities, detailed regions, enormous visibility, and beautiful panoramas. The various presentations and interviews at GDC 2025 focused on what the in-house “BlackSpace” engine can do in detail.
Alongside the industry fair, a new trailer went live for all interested parties, highlighting special features for elements such as the representation of water, fog, fabrics, hair, and light. Take a look:
Beautiful water in games? Nothing better!
What can I look forward to? In the 195 seconds there are the following visual highlights:
- Shallow Water Function: Simulates the interaction with the environment like stones to depict water currents and tides in a particularly realistic way.
- Volumetric Fog and Fluid Simulation: Creates fog that dynamically moves with all character movements – whether walking, running, or rolling.
- Timelapse (Atmospheric Scattering): Thanks to real-time lighting adjusted to the day-and-night cycle and the so-called Atmospheric Scattering, the world of Crimson Desert is supposed to feel alive.
- Fabric & Hair Simulation: Clothing and hair move in the wind, increasing the sense of immersion.
- Raytracing: The real-time light calculation of the BlackSpace engine is said to create a realistic environment even without activated raytracing. With raytracing, the developers promise an even more impressive gaming experience.
Notable anecdote from an interview: Austin Wood from gamesradar.com had the opportunity to see the engine demonstrated at GDC 2025 and then ask questions. As a big fan of beautiful water in games, he wanted to find out in the interview how detailed the water simulation actually is.
So, he asked the designers present: “If my character lands face down in a shallow river, catches himself with his hands, and then stands up, will the back still be dry?” This question reportedly sparked a several-minute-long “deep talk” about the exact engine technique.
For you, here is the concise summary of the answer: The back and the coat should indeed remain dry in such a scenario, while the sleeve would be wet. Due to the “Volumetric Masking Feature,” the Crimson Desert engine is said to be able to simulate different states on a surface.
The main character’s clothes are, for example, divided into many individual parts that can be affected individually by elements like water. It’s crazy what’s possible today, isn’t it? However, while playing, you’ll probably hardly notice it. Therefore, a different, much simpler observation (from the trailer) is much more important: The water in Crimson Desert looks great.
When is Crimson Desert coming out? The open-world RPG is set to be released in late 2025 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, Steam, and Mac. There is no exact date yet. However, the last Game Awards showcased new gameplay that has sparked a lot of excitement for more: Crimson Desert shows further parallels to Game of Thrones, allowing you to ride dragons in Targaryen style
