Pages

Mar 23, 02:00


Kotaku Sunday, March 22, 2026 7:25 PM
     Xenon

The owner of the "Kimzone" was suspected of using his arcade collection as a front for selling drugs

Destructoid Sunday, March 22, 2026 9:03 PM
    

Kliff hanging onto a cliff above the clouds in Crimson Desert.

Though many games these days let you handle all sorts of money, Crimson Desert is rare in the sense that it allows you to learn about investment banking and start putting stuff on the market in the hopes you'll get some good returns.

While index funds aren't directly available, players can invest gold bars, or, if they do not like to wait, sell them to the proper vendor for massive instant cash (500 silver a piece), making this item one of the most valuable in the entire game.

There are several ways to get your hands on them, so here's everything you need to know.

How to find Gold Bars in Crimson Desert

Gold bar description and crafting manual in Crimson Desert.
Gold bars are actually pretty easy to make, now that I think about it. Screenshot by Destructoid

Gold Bars can both be discovered around the world or crafted, the latter requiring an alchemy recipe.

Currently, there seem to be several different spots where gold bars can spawn. There is one guaranteed spawn in Lioncrest Manor, which you can pick up by approaching the fireplace in the main hall and using the Steal option. Guards patrol the place sometimes, so be careful.

Traveling merchants, which can be found walking along the game's countless roads, also tend to drop them from their chests. You need to Threaten them, Kill them, or find a way to make them drop the chests they're carrying. I found one by accident after I fell on them from a cliff, causing the chest to go flying off their back and into the nearby river.

Of course, you can always craft them. The recipe for doing so can be found on the third floor of the Spire of Insight, though it is sometimes also dropped by goblin merchants, much like the treasure chest. To make a gold bar, you need three Brimstone, three Mercury, and 10 Silver Ore.

In the early game, there is a lot of Silver to be found behind the waterfall near the first bridge you cross at the very start of the story in Hernand, so be sure to pick that up, as Mercury and Brimstone will fall into your hands while exploring or doing puzzles around Pywel.

Gold bars can then be invested at the bank (there's one in northern Hernand City) or sold for 500 Silver pieces at the same bank. Other merchants give you significantly less for this valuable item, so make sure you always transact with them at banks and never at regular vendors.

The post How to get Gold Bars in Crimson Desert appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Sunday, March 22, 2026 8:53 PM
    

A temple built into the rock formations of a red desert in Crimson Desert.

Though not a Soulslike per se, Crimson Desert is nonetheless a game that loves throwing boss fights at you, some of which can be really challenging and, quite frankly, unfair.

Gimmick bosses are plenty as well, so it's not even a matter of having to outfight your enemy anymore, you just have to figure out that one specific weakness they have that turns them from a monster into a total punching bag.

The Crimson Nightmare boss, while optional, is one such challenging beast, but there's one way to make it into one of the easiest bosses you've ever fought.

Here's what you need to do.

Beating the Crimson Nightmare

Crimson Nightmare boss knocked down in Crimson Desert.
You can generally ignore the guards attacking you until the boss itself is dead. Screenshot by Destructoid

Now, before you actually get into the fight, I strongly recommend that you get the liberation bar of the base to zero percent. That way you'll kill Crimson Nightmare and immediately cross into the liberation cutscene, rather than having to endure the entire base in a tight arena and probably with less healing and other useful items.

Once you get to the fight itself, Crimson Nightmare is completely invulnerable unless knocked down. It will continuously attack you with its long-range strikes, doing massive damage, especially to an early-game Kliff. To turn this from a complete s**tshow into the easiest thing you've ever had to deal with, you're going to level up your Focus skill and unlock the Focused Repulsion ability.

With that available, simply walk up to the Crimson Nightmare, enter Focus, and use the Unleash ability. This will immediately knock the boss down on the ground, allowing you to go wild on what's left of it. After a delay, it will reconstruct its cloud of poison and start attacking again, which is your cue to use Unleash again and knock it back down. Rinse and repeat until the boss is dead and the area is finally liberated.

Many bosses in the game have these gimmicks and specific counters that make them very easy, if not more manageable. Crimson Nightmare certainly stands out, but it's proof that no boss, no matter how hard, is invincible and can always be brought down via good tactics and strategies.

Crimson Desert, and its Hernand region in particular, is full of challenging bosses, such as the Excavatron, which many players are struggling with in the early game.

The post How to beat the Crimson Nightmare in Crimson Desert appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Sunday, March 22, 2026 6:52 PM
    

The cash register in Retro Rewind

Retro Rewind: Video Store Simulator has a list of Unique VHS tapes that can appear in the New Releases section, and they're all based on real-life movies. While the tapes and their names are completely made up, they're clearly adapted from popular movies we have had in real life.

This guide will provide you with a complete list of all such tapes that can appear in New Releases when you're trying to purchase a tape.

All Unique VHS tapes and SKU Codes in Retro Rewind

Unique VHS tapes are different from ordinary ones. For starters, they only appear under the 'New Releases' section. Second, you'll need to manually own the tape before you can choose to use the SKU Code to order a pirated version. These also include only VHS tapes that have unique posters that refer to the original movies.

New Release in Retro Rewind
Screenshot by Destructoid

Unique VHS name Original Movie Genre
BAD BAX Mad Max (1979) Action [13334]
Die Trying Die Hard (1988) Action [22664]
Jumbo Manhunt First Blood (1982) Action [19654]
Phantom Patrol Ghostbusters (1984) Comedy [27593]
The Color Violet The Color Purple (1985) Drama [10693]
Poetry is Dead Dead Poets Society (1989) Drama [22834]
Rain Woman Thelma & Louise (1991) Drama [19759]
Holiday Break-in Home Alone (1990) Xmas [23771]
Xenocat Alien (1979) Sci-Fi [27356]
X-Terminate The Terminator (1984) Sci-Fi [48825]
Galactic Revellion IV Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) Sci-Fi [22211]
Forward to the Past Back to the Future (1985) Sci-Fi [26621]
Pimpleface Scarface (1983) Police [18610]
Phone Home E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) Kid [23336]
The Static Haunting Poltergeist (1982) Horror [48927]
Hell Hotel The Shining (1980) Horror [14442]
Bad Dreams on Mel Road A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) Horror [12286]
13 Bodies Friday the 13th (1980) Horror [21599]
Kronan the Berserker Conan the Barbarian (1982) Fantasy [45691]
Draconic Park Jurassic Park (1993) Fantasy [16064]

SKU Codes are applicable for all types of VHS tapes that you can obtain in the game, and having them will allow you to pirate any movie you want.

The post All Retro Rewind New Release Unique VHS tapes and SKU Codes appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Sunday, March 22, 2026 6:24 PM
    

One of the quests in Crimson Desert, aka Ben's Request, requires you to kill livestock, and it's not as simple as you might imagine. Unlike wild animals that you can simply attack with your weapons, livestock is treated as stolen goods, so the process to kill them will be different.

To begin the activity, there are several steps to complete, which start with finding the correct tool.

How to kill livestock in Crimson Desert

The process of slaughtering livestock begins with you stealing one. To do that, you'll need a Mask. You can buy the mask from a market vendor named Grimrak. You'll find the vendor near the lower cliffs, south of Hernand Church. Masks can also drop from defeated bandits.

Grimrak location in Crimson Desert
Screenshot and remix by Destructoid

While Grimrak will sell you the mask, there's another NPC named Edmond. He will buy stolen livestock from you.

Steal livestock

Once you've equipped the mask, approach a farm animal. Wait until the Steal prompt appears, and you can then pick up the animal. The moment you do this, a Theft alert meter will appear around you. Don't get spotted by an NPC, as this will put a bounty on you.

If any NPC does not spot you, the meter will disappear on its own.

Kill the livestock

Once the area is clear, drop the animal. However, you won't be able to get a kill option. Instead, use a bow and arrow to shoot at it. Once the animal is dead, you'll be able to get its meat and materials. You can also use a melee weapon to do the same task. The process is pretty much the same.

What do you get from killing livestock in Crimson Desert

Ben's Request in Crimson Desert
Image via Pearl Abyss

Killing livestock isn't necessary, as you can sell a stolen one in the Black Market. That will get you more money, but you can kill them to get meat. This will prevent you from having to buy any meat from the vendor, which is required to feed your pets. Additionally, meat is also required for its healing abilities when you've taken damage in combat.

If you're specifically looking to complete Ben's Request, you'll need to steal a sheep and then slaughter it. There's no alternative way to complete the quest, so keep that in mind.

The post How to slaughter livestock in Crimson Desert – Ben's Request guide appeared first on Destructoid.


MonsterVine Sunday, March 22, 2026 8:00 PM
     Damon and Baby has some endearing qualities and decent gameplay at its core, but its repetitive nature and a few clunky mechanics keep it from being a truly grand AA game. The core gameplay and world are intriguing, but they can't quite make the game truly stand out. I'm a big proponent of original IP, […]