After a surprise wave of popularity, Palworld has become a roaring success following its early Access debut. Developed by Japanese developer Pocket Pair Inc., this open-world survival game combines the appealing monster-taming aspects of the iconic Pokemon series with the progression and grind of the ARK games. At the same time, it is its own beast with many intriguing gameplay elements and mechanics.
Gameplay
The game is played entirely in third-person as players create a custom avatar and set out on a journey to catch monsters called Pals, ranging from the common to legendary ones. The open-world features distinct biomes and locations to discover, each with different Pals and unique boss fights - however, players will often be limited by stamina, whether their own or Pals’ for exploring on foot, climbing, swimming, and soaring through the skies.
While players can attack Pals, they too can target and hurt the protagonist. Unlike the Pokemon titles, action in Palworld takes place in real-time with players having access to varied melee and ranged weapons to battle wild Pals and other threats. There are over 100 monsters to unearth. Caught Pals will attack on their own but their behavior can be commanded during battle. Alternatively, building saddles allows riding and manually using Pals’ abilities in battle.
While exploration and combat are key aspects of Palworld, so are the survival and base-building mechanics. Players must not just manage their HP and stamina, but also hunger by cooking gathered ingredients. They must also fend off status effects like cold and heat by crafting armor and other equipment. Also, picking an ideal spot for crafting a base is key as players will build many structures to aid progression.
From workbenches and stone quarries to hot springs for Pals and weapon assembly lines, and even elaborate houses - players are only limited by their imagination in Palworld. Each Pal has a role to play in helping with management around the base, such as farming, watering, mining, transportation, and much more. Knowing which Pals to set up in the base for efficient workflow is paramount to progressing towards crafting higher quality items and equipment.
System Requirements
Here are the full system requirements for Palworld players on PC:
- Minimum
- OS: Windows 10 or later (64-Bit)
- CPU: Intel i5-3570K @3.4 GHz (4 Cores) or AMD equivalent
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 (2GB) or AMD equivalent
- DirectX: Version 11
- Network: Broadband Internet connection for multiplayer
- Storage: 40 GB available space, SSD required.
- Recommended
- OS: Windows 10 or later (64-Bit)
- CPU: Intel i9-9900K @3.6 GHz (8 Core) or AMD equivalent
- Memory: 32 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 (8 GB) or AMD equivalent
- DirectX: Version 11
- Network: Broadband Internet connection for multiplayer
- Storage: 40 GB available space, SSD required.
Servers
As a multiplayer game, online is a huge part of Palworld. There are two types of servers and are only available on PC via Steam:
- Dedicated servers
- Community servers
Dedicated servers are official ones whose worlds persist even when no one is online while Community servers are managed by players for multiplayer. Both allow up to 32 players simultaneously in a session
FAQs on Palworld
Palworld takes place in a vast open world teeming with creatures to fight and tame called Pals. The goal is to travel across the map catching new monsters and fighting powerful leaders in Towers laden across the world.
Palworld is a third-person action RPG/shooter. Players can catch different Pals in pal Spheres and get them to work in their base to harvest resources and ingredients needed for character progression and to boost productivity.
Currently, Palworld is only available on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S platforms.
Since it is a console and PC-only title that is also in early access at the time of writing, Palworld is not available on iOS platforms.
No official details have been shared by developer Pocket Pair Inc. about the game’s Xbox console exclusivity. It is however a Day One Game Pass addition so perhaps Microsoft has an exclusivity deal with the studio, but this is merely speculation on our part. As per the official Palworld FAQ, while no versions for other platforms such as PS5 are planned currently, they may be considered down the line.
