Someone, please tell me what's going on in Crimson Desert? After 170 hours in Pywel, I feel like I'm still none-the-wiser as to what the Abyss actually is and why Kliff was brought back to life to spend his time walking into random taverns to arm wrestle with strangers. The moment I knew Kliff was built different was when he barely reacted to being transported to a secret realm in the sky and then proceeded to base jump 10,000 feet because a stranger told him he had wings.

Kliff is the goldfish of RPG protagonists—the abyss is unbalanced and he's got to save Pywel from a sinister scheme that threatens the very fabric of- IS THAT A PET BIRD?? Maybe that's what makes him the perfect protagonist for Crimson Desert players. The stats do seem to indicate that people prefer the side distractions to the game's actual story.

I put a monumental 100 hours into Crimson Desert before it was even released, finishing Chapter 7 among a whole heap of other sidequests and activities. This is the halfway point at which you leave Pailune and Hernand for the game's other regions and the eponymous Crimson Desert itself.

I was convinced, gamers being gamers, that a huge chunk of players would catch up to me in no time at all. Well, here we are five weeks after launch and just over a 5th of players have completed Chapter 7, 21.2% of you as of writing this (according to Steam achievements). Now, I guide games for a living, but I don't think I've ever seen such a gaping disparity between the number of people playing, and those actually engaging with the main story.

And it's understandable. Crimson Desert's narrative is definitely below average relative to the game's popularity. Kliff has the personality of a root vegetable, the boss design is often a total chore and, more often than not, quests focus more on tutorialising new mechanics rather than developing the story and characters—in this way, it's very easy to tell that Pearl Abyss is an MMO developer.

But Crimson Desert's world is undoubtedly compelling—an almost immersive sim-style sandbox of stuff to do, to find, to kill. Whether it's hunting legendary animals, finding OP weapons and weird gadgets, or completing endless mundane tasks for strangers whose "problems" range from needing to purchase a pot, to not knowing how their spinning wheel works (turns out you spin it). Getting lost in the game is the best bit.

I can absolutely understand players avoiding the main story for the side bits—after all, this is a game I see myself chewing on for a long time, especially in what is a fairly quiet year for game releases (until a GTA-shaped nuke drops). The best part about this slow approach is that Pearl Abyss is effectively building Crimson Desert while it's flying, adding big quality-of-life improvements and revamping entire features at a ridiculous pace.

It means that, though this isn't an MMO, there's a constant stream of new stuff being chucked into the world that you can try out. Is it ideal for a game to launch in a state where it needs so many tweaks? Not really, but it's already vastly improved over what I played pre-launch. Either way, it's easy to see why players prefer losing themselves in the new shiny distractions versus slogging their way through a lackluster narrative.

Adam Scott knows how Severance ends – but he's not giving us any hints about what's in store for the Macrodata Refinement department.

"Oh, yes. I’m an executive producer on the show, so I’m involved in all of it," Scott, who plays grieving widower Mark Scout and his at-work "innie", Mark S., told Variety when asked if he knew the ultimate plan for the show. "We talk with the writers and Dan [Erickson, showrunner] all the time. I know everything about what’s going on. [As an actor] I like having as much information as possible."

As for Severance season 3, "It’s going to be great," he added. "There are so many surprises. I can’t wait to shoot it."

Severance season 2 wrapped up in March 2025 on Apple TV, almost three years after season 1 premiered. Hopefully, there isn't such a long wait for season 3 but, as Scott's comments suggest, production isn't underway just yet.

One big change to the show's third installment is that Ben Stiller won't be directing any episode, after helming half of season 2's 10-episode run. "I love directing it and look forward to at some point again for sure. I feel like season 3 is going to be the best yet as we continue to evolve," he said last year.

Next up for Scott is Hokum, a new horror movie about an author who travels to Ireland to spread his parents' ashes and discovers that his rented accommodation could be haunted. Directed by Damian McCarthy, the cast also includes Austin Amelio and David Wilmott.

Hokum arrives in theaters on May 8. In the meantime, check out our guide to the other best upcoming horror movies to scare you silly in 2026.