The South Korean Prime Minister and game publisher Pearl Abyss have applauded Crimson Desert for selling over 5 million copies in the past month.
Posting to his official Twitter, South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok praised the game for selling five million copies, saying (via translation), “elevated the status of the Korean game industry on the global stage.” In addition to this major sales milestone, Pearl Abyss also announced a special bonus of 5 million won (~$3,400 USD as of writing) to all employees who worked on the game.
Pearl Abyss’ CEO Heo Jin-young also shared his respect and praise for “all the hard work” the team had put into the game. With this many sales in one month, some are already considering it among Game of the Year titles. Two weeks after Crimson Desert’s release, the game quickly shot past four million copies sold worldwide. And those next couple of weeks added just over a million more.
Prime Minister Min-seok also stated in his Tweet that “by naturally incorporating Korean elements such as Taekwondo and Korean cuisine, it has opened a new chapter for K-content.” He went on to say, “This accomplishment marks a significant turning point, demonstrating that the domestic game industry can expand and leap forward across various platforms, including consoles.”
Domestic South Korean studios have been seeing a tidal wave of success in recent years, with Neowiz’s Lies of P and SHIFT UP Corporation’s Stellar Blade seeing massive critical and commercial success. Crimson Desert’s sales milestone is yet another small way in which “K-content” has begun to gain global popularity. While Netflix is home to a myriad of Korean Dramas, K-Pop Demon Hunters garnered praise from both critics and audiences, and also won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature.
