The runaway success of Palworld, the quirky monster-collecting and crafting game that definitely is not ripping off Pokémon, shows no signs of slowing down or waning in popularity with players.
After selling 12 million copies on Steam and garnering 7 million players on Xbox platforms, Palworld has now been crowned the biggest third-party launch in the history of Xbox Game Pass by
Xbox News confirmed the milestone but did not provide a breakdown between Game Pass downloads and outright Xbox sales. Overall, the game has racked up 19 million players across both Steam and Xbox.
Microsoft said at its peak, the game reached, “nearly 3 million daily active users on Xbox, making it the most-played game on our platforms at that time.”
Palworld no flash in the pan
This cements Palworld’s status as far more than a short-lived viral gaming phenomenon. In its first three days after launch on January 19th, Palworld sold 5 million copies, putting it in elite company as one of the fastest-selling Steam games ever. It also ranked second all-time in peak concurrent players on the platform.
Palworld’s runaway popularity has predictably spawned imitators looking to cash in, with clone versions already appearing for mobile. Unsurprisingly for a game dubbed ‘Pokemon with guns’ by international news outlets, it has attracted scrutiny from Pokémon makers The Pokémon Company over perceived similarities between the two games’ concepts and characters.
While still technically in early access, Palworld has impressed players with its unique formula blending monster collection with crafting, farming, and factory management. Gamers can befriend, breed, and battle the monsters known as “Pals” or even put them to work mining resources. More provocative options like selling Pals for meat or using guns to ward off poachers caused controversy before release.
For now, the hype train looks set to keep on rolling.
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Featured image: Palworld
