It was a pleasant surprise when Pearl Abyss announced the system requirements for Crimson Desert. After all, they did bring the next-gen upgrade for their previous game, Black Desert Online, to both the Xbox Series X and S.

Yet just because a game supports older hardware doesn't mean the game will run well. Cyberpunk 2077 initially promised a lot for older consoles, before its disastrous launch. So, here's what you need to know if you're planning to play the game on Xbox.

The Xbox Series X supports three performance modes, running at 1080p and pushing between 45 and 60 FPS.

Balanced mode targets 40 FPS with an upscaled 4K image. On the other hand, the Quality mode locks the game at 30 FPS but brings higher native resolution and improved ray tracing. As a result, the lighting and shadows are enhanced significantly.

Coming to Series S, you only get Performance and Quality modes, with no middle ground. The Performance mode locks the game at a steady 40 FPS, but the 720p resolution is rough.

Yes, you get 1080p native resolution in quality mode, but even then, the textures don't really hold up to the Series X.

Visual comparisons make this gap even clearer. Colors and lighting on Series X feel richer, especially in darker scenes where shadows add depth. You still get Series S decent brightness and sharpness, but you will surely miss the lack of clarity in the character models and textures.

If you are fine with 30 FPS and slightly softer visuals, it still gets the job done. But if you care about immersion, lighting, and overall polish, the gap becomes noticeable very quickly.

Which Crimson Desert version should you choose?

The Xbox Series X version has better visuals and superior performance across all modes.

Meanwhile, the Xbox Series S version has its tradeoffs. You either have to stick to a lower resolution or limit the framerate to 30 FPS. There's also no support for more modern features like Ray Tracing.

Then again, the Seris S harwarde was never built to handle such taxing features. Pearl Abyss has optimized Crimson Desert well for low-end hardware, and the Series S keeps it accessible.

However, if you're looking to play the game on Xbox, then the Series X is where it truly shines.

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Written by

Nilendu Brahma

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi