Crimson Desert's soundtrack is criminally inoffensive but that hasn't stopped one song from driving me insane

Crimson Desert’s soundtrack is criminally inoffensive but that hasn’t stopped one song from driving me insane | PC Gamer Skip to main content Open menu Close main menu PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES US Edition UK US Canada Australia Subscribe Sign in View Profile Sign out Search Search PC Gamer Games Hardware News Reviews Guides Video Forum More PC Gaming Show PC Gamer Clips Software Codes Coupons Movies & TV Magazine Newsletter Affiliate links Meet the team Community guidelines About PC Gamer PC Gamer Magazine SubscriptionWhy subscribe?Subscribe to the world’s #1 PC gaming magTry a single issue or save on a subscriptionIssues delivered straight to your door or device From$1Subscribe now Don’t miss these Action Crimson Desert review: The Forza Horizon of action RPGs Action If there’s one thing I’ve learned playing Crimson Desert for 75 hours, it’s that you should absolutely treat this game as a slow burn Action Here are 9 incredibly specific and petty beefs I have with Crimson Desert Games I am a videogame music purist who cannot mute even the most diabolical tracks, help me Action Crimson Desert launches to 239,000 players on Steam but ‘Mixed’ reviews, and it’s mostly because of how dense and cryptic the whole thing is Action After 6 hours, Crimson Desert is one of the most overwhelming, chaotic, madcap videogames I’ve ever played—and I’m hungry for more Games Tell me: What’s the worst videogame song you’ve ever had to listen to? Roguelike The most surprising thing about Mewgenics is its amazing soundtrack—and after 115 hours, I’m still discovering new songs Action Crimson Desert’s bafflingly convoluted controls are already frustrating players: ‘That’s basic f*cking video game functionality’ Life Sim Stardew Valley’s soundtrack is the game’s unsung hero, and nails the surprisingly difficult task of making a cosy game’s music memorable Action Crimson Desert has the most diabolical lock and key system I’ve ever seen RPG This musical RPG is doing important work by letting you beat up music snobs, but I really stuck around for the painful (brilliant) puns Action Do yourself a favour in Crimson Desert and play the game with a controller Gaming Industry Steam has quietly become the best place to buy videogame soundtracks—even for games that were never released on PC FPS One of BioShock Infinite’s best narrative devices is its music Popular PC Gamer ClipsCrimson DesertMarathonBest PC gearGDCQuizzes Games Action Crimson Desert Crimson Desert’s soundtrack is criminally inoffensive but that hasn’t stopped one song from driving me insane Features By Mollie Taylor published 22 March 2026 Please, no more Irish folk music. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Pearl Abyss) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter PC Gamer Get the PC Gamer Newsletter Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Want to add more newsletters? Every Friday GamesRadar+ Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you’re going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them. 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From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we’ve got you covered. Signup + Once a month SFX Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month! Signup + An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter There is so much about Crimson Desert that enthralls and deeply frustrates me—you can read about all that in my review—but something that had almost no impact on me was its soundtrack. That’s quite the surprise for someone like myself. I’m the kind of person who absorbs every single note, melody, and instrument videogame music has to offer. I literally have a column talking about this very thing every single week. You’re reading it right now!Critical HitWelcome to Critical Hit (formerly known as Soundtrack Sunday), where I celebrate and lament all things videogame music, audio design, and the ways our favourite games make our ears tingle.But something about Crimson Desert’s music is… a bit bland, perhaps even inoffensive. Which in itself is offensive, to me at least. Nothing about it particularly stands out—our senior guides writer Sean Martin says it feels like it’s aping The Witcher 3’s own score at times. Don’t tell anyone at PC Gamer, but I never actually played that much of The Witcher 3. I’m sorry!That lack of association causes this game’s soundtrack to fade into the background even more for me. Not in the way where it helps further immerse me into Crimson Desert’s world, but one where it simply ceases to exist. It’s a game I could run on mute and I would probably notice no difference. Well, I would notice one difference. Because despite feeling largely uninspired by its music, one song has come to drive me to the edge of insanity.Article continues below You may like Crimson Desert review: The Forza Horizon of action RPGs If there’s one thing I’ve learned playing Crimson Desert for 75 hours, it’s that you should absolutely treat this game as a slow burn Here are 9 incredibly specific and petty beefs I have with Crimson Desert (Image credit: Pearl Abyss)It’s not even bad, per se, but rears its head multiple times: Cooking a meal over the bonfire, purchasing goods from a grocer or from a butcher. I suppose it’s meant to be a song that encapsulates culinary whimsy. But when I’m travelling to buy vegetables, buy meat, and