Palworld is already one of the most popular games, which set a new record in January 2024 as Xbox’s Biggest Month Ever on Console in terms of total playtime. The game has been in early access since January, seeing massive success for both the developer and Xbox. Microsoft is helping Playworld Developers optimize the game to improve performance ahead of its stable release.
Palworld has become the largest third-party game launch on Xbox, reaching more than 10 million people so far due to its inclusion in the Xbox Game Pass Library. Another highlight of this record is that the game has more than 10,000,000 players on consoles so far. Palworld is available on PC via Steam and Xbox GamePass, while Palworld is only made available via Xbox Console.
Microsoft announced Palworld had the biggest third-party launch in Game Pass history.
PocketPair Studio is actively working on addressing bug fixes and working on new features shared via RoadMap. Recently, Palworld invited players to join the beta to test new things in the game ahead of releasing the update. Developers continue to work on getting it ready for its 1.0 release.
Palworld CEO Takuro Mizobe says, “This is just the beginning for us and Palworld, and the feedback we’re gathering while in Game Preview will allow us to continue to improve the experience for Pal Tamers across all platforms.”
In addition to this, the game saw 2 million concurrent player recordings, making it the second game ever to manage this, the other being PUBG. Currently, the game is available on Xbox and PC, while the developer is also working on making the game available on PlayStation and Nintendo to expand its player base. Earlier this year, PlayStation Head of Indies Shuhei Yoshida suggested it was looking to get Palworld on PlayStation and was also working on a Palworld port on PlayStation.
Despite setting a new record for the biggest month on Xbox, PocketPair is looking to outsource and partner with studios, but at the same time, there are no plans to move to a new office or hire staff. PocketPair remains a small studio and wants to make multiple small games with small bugs like Palworld. It’s worth noting that PocketPair realizes no other game from the studio would be able to match the Palworld level anytime soon.
The game is often accused of killing sales, but it also pushes the game further. Palworld’s Day One availability on Game Pass did not hurt sales of the game. However, most of the userbase bought the game on Steam, as the version of Palworld that is available on the Xbox console and Microsoft Store on PC isn’t up-to-date with the Steam version. A large percentage of the game sales primarily come from Steam and the Epic Game Store. Nevertheless, the momentum it gained slowly declined, but with future updates, they’re going to bring their old players back.
Palworld broke the Xbox Cloud Gaming Record.
The most interesting game mechanics and piles are that within the first 10 days of its initial release on the Xbox Cloud Gaming Platform, it had the highest number of players for a Day One release. On PC and console, it runs past 7 million players, which is also still under Cloud Gaming Preview Programs. Xbox Cloud Gaming is still new to everyone, and its very nature means that high traffic may cause an issue.
Users have noted wait times during the first initial release soared into the 35-minute area or even worse with traffic that high. It costs $17/month and isn’t available on GeForce Now. Record-breaking numbers of players have opened up Xbox’s cloud gaming service. Furthermore, developers are gathering feedback to further optimize and address bug fixes to improve performance ahead of a stable release across all platforms.
In addition to the record-breaking Xbox performance, the game logged the largest day-one launch for third-party titles on Xbox Cloud Gaming, which includes Game Unlimited subscriptions. Meanwhile, for a period after its launch, nearly 3 million daily active users made Palworld games on Xbox. Currently, the game is in early access for $30, or free for Game Pass subscribers on Xbox and PC.
While the game is among the controversy over the design of Palworld, several players and commentators have accused the game of plagiarism. Nintendo has shared a statement to address the plagiarism accusations and confirm its intention to investigate the alleged instances of copyright infringement. The Xbox version of the game doesn’t share parity with the PC iteration, which is especially true when it comes to Palworld Multiplayer. While this might be disappointing for Xbox owners, PocketPair is working towards improving its Xbox multiplayer capabilities.
On the other hand, the PS5 game of last year, Spider-Man 2, managed to cross 2.5 million copies within 24 hours and over 5 million in ten days. These games are Sony’s fastest-selling first-party titles in PS5 history. Cross-play is one of the community’s most requested features and is also slated for future updates, according to the report.