This is the game that actually inspired Palworld… and it’s not Pokémon!

Game News This is the game that actually inspired Palworld… and it’s not Pokémon!

There is no shortage of arguments and enthusiasm – from the 25 million unique players – around Palworld. Developers at Pocketpair studio will soon return with a first major update, which will bring many additions, such as new creatures and also a new area. Innovations that are welcome and that should delight the survival game lover that I am. But unfortunately, a problem persists. Whatever the qualities and novelties of Palworld, in my opinion, the shadow of another game continues to hang over the title. And no, it’s not Pokémon!

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Palworld, between success and controversy

Chances are slim that you’ve never heard of Palworld. It is an open-world multiplayer survival game developed and published by Pocketpair, a young Japanese studio that was already behind Craftopia. The title propels us from its launch to a huge map, which we explore in search of food, materials and points of interest of all types. And this, with the aim of surviving, prospering and defeating all the bosses residing in the lands. Released into early access on January 19, the game was a phenomenal success. On Steam alone, a peak of more than 2 million simultaneous players was reached, classifying it as the 2nd highest peak in the platform’s history. Crazy numbers, but they have obviously decreased over time. In recent months, the average number of simultaneous players has been close to 17 thousand.

A record-breaking success, therefore, but one that comes with its share of controversy.mainly because of one part of the game I deliberately left out: the Pals. Pokémon’s obvious cousinthe Pals are numerous and varied creatures that inhabit the islands of Palpagos, where we live. These species are truly at the heart of Palword’s gameplay and adventure. We capture them, fight them, make them work for us, improve them, etc… An obvious comparison, but source of many controversiessometimes claiming that Palword is just a “Pal” copy of Pokémon, sometimes that this is what new Game Freak games should be like.

A similarity on paper, but ultimately one that doesn’t make much sense. The two titles differ in many ways and fall into very different genres. While Pokémon bases its experience on a mass-market RPG in the style of Game Freak, Palworld responds to the codes of the survival game. And this, adopting mechanisms of elaboration, resource collection, maintenance of vital functions and discovery of new manufacturing recipes. Devices that come from much more ancestors of the genre, such as Minecraft, Rust AND DayZthe one with the Pokémon license. It is therefore not necessary to mention weapons, TPS combat or other clear contrasts to distinguish the two titles.

Similarities to ARK

On the other hand, Palworld is very close to another universe: that of ARK. Launched in 2015, ARK Survival Evolved is an open-world survival game where the adventure begins when players wake up naked on an island inhabited by dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures. In this dangerous world, players must gather resources, hunt, farm, and build shelters if they want to survive. To tame their territory, albeit hostile, they can domesticate, train and ride various creatures, such as tyrannosaurs or mammoths. Furthermore, if they want to resist attacks from enemies and other threats of all types, players can create alliances and tribes to gather their forces. Finally, to end the adventure, we will have to fight 3 bosses that will take us to a final opponent to finally access one last scene.

Concepts, therefore, more than similar, which would almost make Palworld look like a bad copycat. Especially when the title’s only originalities seem to come straight from Pokémon. From creature mounts, to engrams, to base creation and general gameplay, almost everything brings those of us who have played it back to ARK. We will still notice a much more in-depth principle of industrialization and bosses in Palworld.

Watch ARK: Survival Ascended on Amazon

Getting Rid of Your Inspirations

If Palworld wants to break free from these similarities, its developers must separate their game from the shadow of ARK and Pokémon. And for that, it seems that the new update, called Sakurajima, adds original ideas. We are thinking in particular about the PVP arena, which will allow players to challenge each other in 3v3 Pals combat, an intriguing and unique idea that is welcome.

As well as adding new friends, who should, if they are original, affirm the Pocketpair style. And so, in a way, we forget the similarity to Pokémon that we know very well. With this update available on June 27th, Palworld therefore has a lot to do, it must make players want to return to their game, while at the same time standing out for its inspirations; It’s not an easy task when you see where they come from.

In turn, if Ark 2 wishes to build on the success of the previous part, the Wildcard studio should not delay in showing the first reassuring game images, which meet the expectations placed on the work. So, there are a lot of things to come for survival game fans, let’s just hope that the proposals are diverse and original, and that they don’t get buried in classic codes seen and revised.