Intel issues official statement on Crimson Desert ARC GPU incompatibility
Intel’s ready to work with Pearl Abyss to bring ARC GPU support to Crimson Desert
– Update – Pearl Abyss has backtracked, confirming that they will support Intel ARC GPUs with future Crimson Desert game updates.
Pearl Abyss’ newest PC hit, Crimson Desert, is incompatible with Intel ARC GPUs. The game does not boot on PCs with Intel ARC graphics, and the game’s FAQ tells Intel users to request a refund. This evening, Intel has issued a statement to OC3D to say that they are disappointed in this situation, and that they “remain ready to assist Pearl Abyss however we can”.
Intel has stated that they have reached out to Pearl Abyss “many times” over the past few years, aiming to “test, validate, and optimise support for Intel graphics”. This support included early access to hardware, drivers, and engineering resources. Based on the statement below, it appears that Pearl Abyss never accepted Intel’s offer.
Below is Intel’s full statement.
We’re aware that Crimson Desert currently doesn’t launch on systems with Intel GPUs and we’re hugely disappointed that players using Intel graphics hardware can’t jump in to the world of Pywel at launch.
Getting games running smoothly is always a partnership between developers and hardware makers. Over the past several years, we’ve reached out to Pearl Abyss many times to help test, validate, and optimize support for Intel graphics, providing early hardware, drivers, and engineering resources across multiple generations, including Alchemist, Battlemage, Meteor Lake, and Lunar Lake.
Our teams are deeply committed to helping all studios deliver the best experience possible, providing open tools, documentation, and direct engineering support to make sure their games run well for everyone, including the tens of millions of players using Intel GPUs. We remain ready to assist Pearl Abyss however we can.
For details on the choice not to enable Intel support at launch, please reach out directly to Pearl Abyss.
– Intel to OC3D
Given Crimson Desert’s otherwise performance on PC, it is strange that the game lacks support for Intel graphics. The game’s FAQ states that the game “currently does not support Intel ARC graphics cards”. While this statement is not a guarantee of future support, it is far from a “never” from Pearl Abyss.
Hopefully, this bizarre state of affairs can be addressed through a future game update and/or Intel GPU driver updates. Since Intel now has powerful integrated and discrete graphics solutions, it makes sense for Pearl Abyss to target Intel hardware. If it can run on an ROG Xbox Ally handheld, it should be able to run on modern Intel ARC mobile and discrete graphics.
You can join the discussion on Intel’s comments on Crimson Desert PC support on the OC3D Forums.
