Black Desert Online
Developer(s)Pearl Abyss
Publisher(s)Pearl Abyss
Director(s)Kim Daeil, Youn Jaemin
Producer(s)Berkay Bayar　Kim Jae-hee
Designer(s)Göksel Kaan Ulutürk
Artist(s)Seo Yongsu
Composer(s)Hui Man Ryu
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Android, iOS, iPadOS
ReleaseMicrosoft Windows
  • KOR: 14 December 2014
  • EU/NA: 3 March 2016
Android, iOS
  • AS: 2019
  • WW: December 2019
Xbox One
  • WW: 4 March 2019
PlayStation 4
  • WW: 22 August 2019
Genre(s)MMORPG
Mode(s)Multiplayer

Black Desert Online (Korean: 검은사막) is a sandbox-oriented fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Korean video game developer Pearl Abyss and originally published for Microsoft Windows in 2014. A mobile version titled Black Desert Mobile was initially released in Asia by early 2019,[1] and worldwide in December 2019. The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions, known simply as Black Desert, were released in 2019. The game is free-to-play in some parts of the world, but follows a buy-to-play business model in other editions, including the English-language editions.[2]

In 2018, Pearl Abyss began work on a prequel to the timeline of Black Desert, titled Crimson Desert, but during development it became a separate, stand alone IP with a different storyline and new characters.[3]

In 2021, Kakao Games stopped services and Pearl Abyss took back over the publishing rights.

Gameplay

The combat in Black Desert Online is action based, requiring manual aiming and free movement similar to those found in third-person shooters. The game offers housing, fishing, farming, and trading,[4] as well as large player versus player siege events, and castle battles.[5] It is well regarded for its advanced and in-depth character customization.[6]

An active combat system requires precise manual aiming, dodging and using combos, unlike the tab-targeting system seen in most MMORPGs. Skills can be activated through use of combos for attacking, dodging or blocking. Players are also able to engage in mounted combat.[7][8] Mounts are acquired by taming in the wild, and players are able to breed special mounts by mating certain types.[9] Mounts require feeding and care, cannot be stored in the inventory, and may be killed.[10]

The game includes a number of features to assist with immersion and the sandbox aspect. The dynamic, worldwide weather system includes large-scale events such as typhoons and will influence gameplay.[11] Localized weather will include events such as temporary fog, which players may exploit to launch surprise attacks on rival guild structures.[12] There is also a dynamic day/night cycle with a gradual progression of lighting effects. During the night some non-player characters (NPCs) will become unavailable as they return home and the monsters will drop more loot. Different game content is available depending upon whether it is night or day.[13][14] Player housing is instanced and varies in size and location. Players are able to furnish and equip their housing by purchasing furniture through NPCs or through crafting.[15][16]

Setting

Black Desert Online takes place in a high fantasy setting and revolves around the conflict between two rival nations, the Republic of Calpheon and the Kingdom of Valencia.[17] Calpheon is very materialistic whereas Valencia is very spiritual.

Long ago, the four main areas, Calpheon, Serendia, Balenos, and Mediah, were at peace. This all changed when the Black Death started spreading via merchants from Valencia, in an area east of Mediah that controlled trading. Many around the world died of the plague. Some who did not, were expelled due to the black death causing paranoia. Eventually, the three of the main areas made an alliance and began a war that lasted for 30 years; with Mediah profiting the most by harvesting black stones and trading it to the others.

After the war, the alliance slowly started to conduct trades with Valencia once again. Tensions arose when the other areas discovered the importance of black stones. Desperate to gain wealth, they began to search for black stones as well. Calpheon had no area that harbored the precious black stones, thus they stole from the rest. This created further conflicts with Valencia, due to the fact that Valencia has a vast Black Desert which holds many black stones.[18]

Classes

The game currently has 27 classes available of which are the Warrior, Ranger, Sorceress, Berserker, Tamer, Musa, Maehwa, Valkyrie, Kunoichi, Ninja, Wizard, Witch, Dark Knight, Striker, Mystic, Archer, Lahn, Shai, Guardian, Hashashin, Nova, Sage, Corsair, Drakania, Woosa, Scholar and Maegu.

Development and release history

Early PC development and release

Black Desert Online has been in development since 2010. The Korean studio Pearl Abyss was founded in September 2010 by Kim Daeil,[19] previously a developer with Hangame and NHN Gaming, and began development of Black Desert Online shortly after.[20][21][22] The game uses Pearl Abyss' custom Black Desert game engine specifically created to handle the fast rendering required for its seamless world and large-scale castle sieges with a lot of characters.[20][17]

After agreeing a Japanese publishing deal with GameOn Japan on 8 September 2012 Pearl Abyss began releasing details of the game to the public.[20][23] In November 2012 the game was demonstrated at G-Star.[24] Black Desert Online was also showcased at Gamescom 2013.[11][25]

Black Desert Online entered closed beta testing in October 2013.[26][27] A second, three week long closed beta test begun in April 2014.[28][29] Open beta was launched in December 2014.[30]

The game was released in Korea, Japan and Russia in 2015, in North America and Europe on 3 March 2016,[31] in South America, Turkey, and countries in the Middle East and North Africa region in 2017 and Southeast Asia in 2018. Black Desert Online uses a free-to-play model in Korea, Japan and Russia,[32][33][34] while in Taiwan, South East Asia, Europe, North America and South America the game uses a buy-to-play model.[35]

Post-launch PC development

Promotion at Gamescom 2016

The Mediah Expansion was released in the North American/European version on 30 March 2016.[36] Mediah Part 2 was released on 4 May 2016.[37] The new classes called the Musa, the Maehwa, the Kunoichi and the Ninja were released for play in 2016,[38] followed by the Dark Knight[39] and the Striker[40] in 2017, the Lahn in 2018,[41] and the Shai in 2019.[42] The Valencia I Expansion was released in the North American / European version on 29 June 2016.[43] All expansions and class additions have been free of charge in the buy-to-play model, with no plans of charging for additional future content stated. An updated PC version retitled Black Desert Remastered, featuring new visuals and new audio, was released on 22 August 2018.[44]

In October 2015, Black Desert Online was published and localized in Russia by Cypriot publisher GameNet. This contract expired on October 12, 2018, without an agreement as to account information, including character data. Pearl Abyss has apologized to Russian players and announced they would self-publish in Russia when their own localization efforts were completed.[45] In April 2018, Pearl Abyss announced that it would be changing service providers on North American servers to improve stability.[46] In February 2019, changes were made to the Marketplace to create the new Central Market, which features more user-friendly ways to buy and sell items from the Marketplace.[47]

A major content update was included with the Drakania & Eternal Winter update on April 6, 2022. This update included a new region and class.

In Japan, Pearl Abyss Japan announced that the service is operated in 150 countries. Bonus points are given to logged-in players as a 150-country operation gift.

Console versions

At the Taipei Games Show in January 2017, Pearl Abyss stated Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions of the game are in development, and was confirmed again by Pearl Abyss in March.[48][49] The Xbox One version, simply titled Black Desert, was revealed during Microsoft's E3 2017 press conference. It was launched live in North America and Europe on 4 March 2019, following multiple beta releases since 2018.[50] In terms of content, however, the Xbox version of game was about three years behind the PC version upon its release.[51] The Striker, Dark Knight, Lahn, and Musa classes were made available for the Xbox One players in April 2019.[52]

The PlayStation 4 version was released on 22 August 2019.[53]

The console versions started featuring support for cross-platform play between both consoles by March 2020.[54]

Mobile versions

In August 2017, Pearl Abyss has released an official teaser for Black Desert Mobile.[55] It was released for the Android and iOS in February 2018,[56] initially only in Korea, Japan and Taiwan, with the Global version (North America, Europe and Asia) released in December 2019, during The Game Awards 2019.[44]

Reception

Black Desert beta has been well received.[32][62] The full game has received mixed or average reviews from critics, currently holding an average score of 73/100 across the PC, PS4, and Xbox One versions on Metacritic.[57]

In April 2016, the publisher Kakao Games announced that Black Desert Online had achieved sales of 400,000 copies in its first month on the European and North American markets and was showing an average of 100,000 concurrent users.[63][64] By March 2017, Black Desert had 3.4 million registered players in North America and Europe.[65] By May 2018, more than 1.2 million copies of the game have sold on Steam in Europe and North America.[66] As of September 2018, the game had over 10 million registered users worldwide.[67]

By April 2019, the game had reached over 18 million players, and its total revenue had passed $1 billion.[68] As of September 2020, the game has reached 40 million players and grossed $1.7 billion worldwide.[69][70][71]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Calvin, Alex (April 12, 2019). "Mobile accounts for nearly a third of Black Desert franchise's $1 billion sales". Pocket Gamer. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  2. ↑ "Try For Free | Black Desert Online". www.blackdesertonline.com. Retrieved 2020-12-14.
  3. ↑ "G-Star 2019: New Details and Trailers Emerge for PLAN 8, Crimson Desert, DokeV and Shadow Arena". Pearl Abyss. 13 November 2019. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
  4. ↑ "Black Desert Online: An Oasis For Sandbox MMORPG Lovers". Game Informer. 28 March 2016.
  5. ↑ "Top 6 Modern MMOs to Play". GamingRespawn. 11 April 2017.
  6. ↑ "Black Desert for Xbox One Gets New Trailer Boasting its Top-Notch Character Customization". Twinfinite. 2019-02-26. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  7. ↑ "BLACK DESERT, INTERVISTA ESCLUSIVA". Worldsfactory. 18 April 2013. Archived from the original on 29 April 2013.
  8. ↑ Lefebvre, Eliot (18 April 2013). "Black Desert interview talks active combat and the big picture". Massively. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 17 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "Black Desert Pre-beta Interview with the Producer Kim Daeil". 2p.com. 27 March 2014. Archived from the original on 21 April 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  10. ↑ "Black Desert: A Revolution in the Making". freemmostation.com. 13 March 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  11. 1 2 Palumbo, Alessio (28 August 2013). "Black Desert Gameplay and Interview". Worlds Factory. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  12. ↑ "Black Desert – Closed Beta Videos, Screenshots & Updates Day 4". MMOCast. 20 October 2013. Archived from the original on 17 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  13. ↑ "Black Desert Real Time Weather". steparu.com. 8 October 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  14. ↑ Lefebvre, Eliot (8 October 2012). "Black Desert shows off time transitions". Massively. Archived from the original on 16 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  15. ↑ "Black Desert Housing System". steparu.com. 24 September 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  16. ↑ Reahard, Jef (24 September 2012). "Black Desert's housing system detailed". Massively. Archived from the original on 16 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  17. 1 2 "Black Desert – Interview with developer Pearl Abyss". MMO Culture. 9 March 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
  18. ↑ "Story | Black Desert Fansite". black-desert.com. Archived from the original on 2017-07-24. Retrieved 2017-07-15.
  19. ↑ Fuller, Garrett (4 July 2013). "Daeil Kim On What Sets Their Game Apart". mmorpg.com. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
  20. 1 2 3 "Black Desert Online Interview". steparu.com. 19 September 2012. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
  21. ↑ "从战斗到战争!访《黑色沙漠》开发商CEO". 17173.com. 10 March 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013. (in Chinese)
  22. ↑ Park, Kyung-Min (13 September 2013). "R2 C9의 김대일 PD, 신규개발사 펄어비스로 컴백". inven. Retrieved 19 October 2013. (in Korean)
  23. ↑ Yamaguchi, Kazunori (8 September 2012). "最新グラフィックスで描かれる次世代アクションMMORPG「黒い砂漠（仮）」日本独占ライセンス契約調印式詳報". 4Gamer.net. Retrieved 19 October 2013. (in Japanese)
  24. ↑ "[G*Star 2012] Black Desert – Preparing to launch next year". MMO Culture. 10 November 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  25. ↑ Guthrie, M.J. (27 August 2013). "Black Desert Gamescom video shows 22 minutes of gameplay". Massively. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  26. ↑ Lefebvre, Eliot (26 September 2013). "Black Desert starts its first closed beta on October 17th". Massively. Archived from the original on 10 May 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
  27. ↑ "Black Desert Closed Beta Day 1: Videos, Screenshots & Updates". MMOsite.com. 17 October 2013. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  28. ↑ "Black Desert Second Closed Beta Lasts for about Three Weeks". 2p. 20 March 2014. Archived from the original on 16 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  29. ↑ Reahard, Jef (21 March 2014). "Black Desert ramping up beta testing". Massively. Archived from the original on 16 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  30. ↑ "Everything You Need to Know about Black Desert So Far". 2p. 9 March 2014. Archived from the original on 16 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  31. ↑ "Black Desert Online important pre-launch info". Black Desert Online. 24 February 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  32. 1 2 Kain, Erik (25 January 2013). "'Black Desert' Is An Amazing Looking MMORPG, And It Has The Trailer To Prove It". Forbes. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  33. ↑ "Black Desert Online: Overview". freemmostation.com. February 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
  34. ↑ "《黑色沙漠》公開新一波遊戲畫面 一展遊戲內生活化的風貌 或開發PS4版本". gamer.com.tw. 23 August 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2013. (in Chinese)
  35. ↑ "Press Release: Black Desert West will be B2P - Black Desert Action Fantasy MMORPG".
  36. ↑ "[Ended] Regular Maintenance".
  37. ↑ "Shiver Me Timbers! Black Desert Online Reels In Pirate-Themed Mediah Part Two Update".
  38. ↑ "Black Desert Online Ninja and Kunoichi classes release next week". PC Invasion. 2016-07-12. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  39. ↑ "Black Desert Online: Dark Knight Awakening Coming Next Week to NA and EU". 2P. 6 April 2017. Archived from the original on 11 April 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  40. ↑ Janca, Ben (2017-05-18). "Black Desert Online - Official Striker Trailer". GameSpot. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  41. ↑ "Black Desert Online's Newest Class Lahn is Now Available". GamingBolt.com. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  42. ↑ "Premier aperçu de la Shai de Black Desert Online". JeuxOnLine (in French). Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  43. ↑ "Valencia Part One Expansion Out".
  44. 1 2 "[Update: New gameplay trailer] Pearl Abyss will launch Black Desert Mobile globally on Android this year". Android Police. 2019-06-18. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  45. ↑ "Information on future plans for the development of the Black Desert Russia service". 13 October 2018.
  46. ↑ "Announcement: Server Provider Change". 5 April 2018.
  47. ↑ "Patch Notes - 20th February 2019". www.blackdesertonline.com. Retrieved 2019-03-11.
  48. ↑ De Meo, Francesco (29 March 2017). "Black Desert Online Console Release Being Worked On By Pearl Abyss".
  49. ↑ "Pearl Abyss on Twitter". 27 March 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  50. ↑ "Black Desert Holding Final Beta for Xbox One Beginning on Valentines Day". DualShockers. 2019-02-01. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  51. ↑ Fahey, Mike (4 March 2019). "The Xbox One Version Of Black Desert Is Missing Three Years' Worth Of Content". Kotaku. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  52. ↑ "Black Desert for Xbox One Getting Four New Playable Classes Next Week". Twinfinite. 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  53. ↑ Brandon Orselli (2019-07-03). "PS4 Port for Black Desert Launches August 22". Niche Gamer. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  54. ↑ https://www.console.playblackdesert.com/xbox/News/Detail?boardNo=3393&category=0
  55. ↑ "Black Desert Mobile: Watch the First Gameplay Trailer". 2P. 16 August 2017. Archived from the original on 22 September 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  56. ↑ "Black Desert Mobile will launch CBT this February". GamerBraves. 2018-01-11. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  57. 1 2 "Black Desert Online for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  58. ↑ "Black Desert for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
  59. ↑ "Black Desert for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  60. ↑ VanOrd, Kevin (1 April 2016). "Black Desert Online Review". GameSpot. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
  61. ↑ Johnson, Leif (16 March 2016). "Black Desert Online Review". IGN. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
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  63. ↑ "Black Desert Online Sells 400.000 Copies in its First Month". develop. 5 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  64. ↑ Nunneley, Stephany (5 April 2016). "Black Desert Online sold 400,000 copies its first month in the west". VG24/7. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  65. ↑ "Black Desert Has 3.4 Million Players in NA and EU Servers". 2P. 3 March 2017. Archived from the original on 3 May 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  66. ↑ "Black Desert Online Hits 1.2 Million Sales on Steam". GamingBolt.com. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  67. ↑ "Black Desert Online Celebrates 10 Million Registered Users Worldwide". Gamasutra. 5 September 2018.
  68. ↑ Arroyo, Paolo (2019-04-11). "Black Desert Online Hits $1 Billion In Sales". Player.One. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  69. ↑ Calvin, Alex (10 September 2020). "Black Desert Online has made $1.7bn in revenue to date". GamesIndustry.biz. Gamer Network. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  70. ↑ "Best Korean MMORPG for PC 2015-2020 | EnyGames". enygames.com. Retrieved 2020-12-14.
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