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Overview

The hot air balloon is one of several aerial traversal methods in Crimson Desert. It provides slow, scenic travel that allows players to survey the landscape and spot points of interest from above. Unlike the rapid gliding of the Crow's Wing or the speed of late-game dragon mounts, the balloon emphasizes a leisurely pace suited to sightseeing and reaching specific destinations.

Gameplay footage has shown Kliff stepping into the balloon's basket and firing the burner to ascend. The balloon was first shown in official Gamescom trailers and has appeared in subsequent gameplay breakdowns from outlets including The Escapist, GamingBolt, and PC Gamer.

Connection to the Abyss

The hot air balloon's primary purpose is reaching the floating islands of the Abyss. The Abyss is a mysterious realm of floating landmasses above Pywel tied to the game's larger narrative. Fragments of the Abyss are raining down onto the world below, and investigating them is central to the second major storyline.

Once on the floating islands, players can use an Ultrahand-like tool (compared to Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom) to align fragments and solve puzzles. The balloon serves as the bridge between the grounded open world and the supernatural Abyss realm, making it both a traversal tool and a story-progression mechanic.

Whether the balloon can be piloted freely at any time or is only available at specific story points has not been confirmed. It likely plays a role in progressing the main story given the Abyss's narrative importance.

Skydiving

Players can skydive from the hot air balloon. This has been shown in gameplay trailers where Kliff leaps from the basket at altitude and free-falls toward the ground below. The Crow's Wing glider can be deployed during a skydive to transition into controlled flight, creating a seamless chain from balloon to free-fall to gliding to landing.

Aerial Traversal in Context

The hot air balloon is one of several ways to travel through the air in Crimson Desert.

Crimson Desert's traversal system is designed so that different modes of travel flow into one another. A player can fly in a balloon, skydive out, deploy the Crow's Wing glider, and land directly on a moving horse. See Exploration & Traversal for the full traversal system.