During today's ID@Xbox Showcase, Pocketpair teased a new update for its hit action survival, monster-collecting game Palworld.
We don't know everything that the update will bring, but the trailer does confirm the arrival of one thing fans will surely love: new pals! For those who have yet to play the game, Pals are animal-like creatures that players can battle and capture to use for base-building and combat, among other things.
It seems like these new pals will be found in what appears to be a new explorable location that looks to be inspired by Japan. The new environment is briefly shown with shrines and cherry blossoms, while some of the pals appear to be inspired by Japanese culture. There's a frog wearing a karate gi, for example, and a dog-like creature meditating in the air.
The details of this update are being kept under wraps, but players eager for new content now at least have an idea as to when they can expect some more exciting adventures. The trailer confirmed that the new update will arrive in Summer 2024.
Palworld is one of the biggest surprise hits of the year. Developed by Pocketpair and released in January, the game sold eight million units in jus tits first six days of early access, while reaching over two million concurrent players on Steam. With over 15 million units sold as of February 2024, it's one of the best-selling PC games.
The game's success caught developer Pocketpair by surprise though, and company CEO Takura Mizobe admitted back in March that the game proved so profitable that it is "too big for a studio with our size to handle."
Mizobe confirmed that despite the game's success, he wants the indie studio to remain small and continue to make multiple small games rather than big-budget triple-A games. He did not rule out partnering with other companies or entertaining acquisition offers to assist with development.
For now, though, Palworld remains in early access on Steam and Xbox. Pocketpair continues to use this time to gather feedback on the game to make it the best experience possible.
“We plan to improve the quality of the game by making various improvements throughout early access for at least one year," Pocketpair wrote during the game's early access launch. "During early access, we will update the game based on the roadmap, actively adding content and improving the game systems. Depending on the progress of development, we may consider extending early access or if we are satisfied with the state of the game, officially releasing the game.”
As of right now, Palworld is only playable on Xbox and PC, although it could come to PlayStation and possibly even Nintendo Switch in the future.