Do you remember DokeV? I, like many others, remember seeing it showcased during Gamescom’s Opening Night live in 2021. It garnered a lot of attention for many unique reasons. Whether that was the appeal in the gameplay of being an open world creature collector in the modern day akin to Pokémon or its “Rockstar” music video at The Game Awards that same year. The latter of which made it skyrocket in intrigue amongst millions of people.
But what if I were to tell you that original trailer for DokeV that garnered that initial batch of attention was from 2019. In fact, ever since its explosive debut in 2021, the game has been in the shadows, but not for the reasons many other games usually tend to. In fact, over at the games official YouTube channel, the last video posted was that Rockstar music video. As well as the last post on their official X account being in January of 2022. This is where things will get a bit foggy, but first, it is important to understand what DokeV is, and who it is from.
What is DokeV?
DokeV is being developed by Pearl Abyss. Pearl Abyss is best known for their work on the MMORPG Black Desert. As well as the upcoming Crimson Desert which is pivoting from the MMORPG roots of Black Desert into a single player open world action-adventure title. Which DokeV seems to be in the same vein:
DokeV is an upcoming creature-collecting open world action-adventure from Pearl Abyss filled with intriguing stories and set in a unique, vibrant world. Meet Dokebi, whimsical creatures that live side-by-side with humans and encourage people’s dreams from which they gain strength. The gorgeous and colorful world of DokeV is brimming with activities, stories, and experiences, so get ready to befriend tons of Dokebi and to embark on an adventure! – DokeV Reveal Trailer Description.
Crimson Desert has been Pearl Abyss’s focus as a studio. Considering the only updated gameplay has been for just this title. However, the game still lacks a definitive release date. Leaving it still shrouded in mystery similar to DokeV and another game under development from Pearl Abyss called Plan 8. While the number of projects point towards a very busy studio. It is very important to keep in mind that all three, Crimson Desert, DokeV, and Plan 8 were all announced in 2019, and the only game amongst the three to have any updated gameplay is Crimson Desert.
With this information in mind, it does not lead me to believe that Pearl Abyss is just a big and busy studio. But instead, that they took on a handful of major projects and only have the resources to focus on one while updating Black Desert. Leaving the likes of Plan 8, and DokeV on the backburner with only brief mentions in their quarterly earnings call.
An Ellusive Game of Telephone
As of Pearl Abyss’s earnings call in November of 2022, they stated that DokeV was originally due to launch in 2024. Which, by the time of writing this article, that clearly has not panned out. This is due in part to the fact that in this same earnings call they mentioned that their projects do have dedicated teams, but more than half of their development staff at the time were working on Crimson Desert. This is also factoring in normal realities of game development. Such as development staff leaving during the process and having to train new ones.
Beyond here, other updates via websites such as Jeuxonline in February of last year said that Pearl Abyss is looking into console exclusivity deals, which could indicate any number of things. From more revenue being injected into the studio or wanting to hedge their bets on popular platforms as opposed to a full multiplatform release. This same article does mention that Pearl Abyss is not concerned about any delays at the time as stated below:
Pearl Abyss is nevertheless more categorical about the lifespan and operation of its upcoming games. Some observers wonder how long the development of Crimson Desert and DokeV, whose releases have already been postponed several times, will last. Pearl Abyss explains this and argues that the development time is then justified by the duration of operation of its games – possibly for decades – Jeuxonline Article.
Following up in a similar earnings call in May of last year. Pearl Abyss did confirm that the development of DokeV is still in full swing. But hinted at a release window beyond the launch of Crimson Desert, which still does not have a concrete release date of its own. Which in the following earnings call of August of last year did state that they will be completing development of Crimson Desert in the latter half of that year. Which, considering it is November in the following year with no release date in sight for the game or DokeV, it is even more alarming when there are no mentions of the game from August, until recently in May of this year.
DokeV In the Shadows of Confusion
In this earnings call, they talked in a similar manner to the one from the prior year. Where DokeV’s development is still ongoing and cannot release gameplay until Crimson Desert has released. This is concerning, because even when the game had a recent 50-minute gameplay demo released to the public in September. There is still no concrete release window.
In a report from PCGamesN, they took an interview from InsightKorea that mentioned the game could release in quarter 2 of next year. Which could be anywhere from April to June. However, even with this interview out there, it is not with an official staff member from Pearl Abyss themselves. As well as Pearl Abyss not confirming this release window. Keeping Crimson Desert’s eventual release in the shadows, similar to DokeV, which as of their earnings call in August, still has no direct follow-up.
When it comes to what’s going on with DokeV, it only takes a brief look at the information available to come away with one reality. Despite Pearl Abyss being a big and busy company, ever since 2019 there has been three new projects in development. But none have released and have no release windows. Between Crimson Desert, Plan 8 and DokeV, I have no doubt in my mind that when they do release, they will live up to the hype they all have garnered.
However, I feel as though the triad of announcements may have been detrimental. If Crimson Desert still does not have a concrete release date, and DokeV will only get a follow up on any meaningful information after the fact. DokeV, despite being a hit announcement, should not have been announced, similar to Plan 8.
In Conclusion
While that does sound harsh, and game announcements can garner new talent to development companies to help with the development of said. Announcing DokeV in 2019 and boasting that announcement two years later through Gamescom and The Game Awards was a mistake.
DokeV had the eyes of millions and considering it will be the following act to Crimson Desert. Its fanbase will most likely be waiting sometime beyond 2025 if that interview from InsightKorea is to be believed. Which could cripple the hype unless Pearl Abyss can make a clear roadmap and end nearly half a decades long game of telephone with grace. Instead of leading people to believe it could end up just being vaporware similar to Abandoned.
A breakdown of the timeline can be found here from a Reddit user going by the name of Kiri. They have aggregated all of the important parts of the earnings calls used in this article.
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