Summary
A number of vocalPokemonfans have taken to social media to offer some harsh words aboutPalworld, arguing that the game is quite blatant at ripping off Game Freak’s character designs. Their criticism gained online traction shortly afterPalworldwas released in early accesson PC and Xbox consoles, in addition to reaching Xbox Game Pass.
First announced in June 2021,Palworldhas long worn the “Pokemonwith guns” label, even though its developer—Pocketpair—consistently tried to distance itself from such descriptions. But given the current state of the monster taming genre, comparisons with Nintendo’s iconic franchise appear impossible, as non-Pokemongames of this sort are an exceedingly rare breed.
It is hence unsurprising thatPalworldinvited quite a bit of scrutiny from thePokemonfandom immediately following its early access launch. That ongoing interest has so far yielded a substantial wave of accusations alleging that the game brazenly stole Game Freak’s monster designs. Cinderace, Espurr, and Meganium are just some of the many creatures that the fandom accusedPalworldof ripping off, as are Lucario, Flairees, and Galarian Meowth.
This wave of criticism is far from unprecedented;concerns aboutPalworldcreature designs being too close toPokemonstarted circulating online as soon as Pocketpair began sharing gameplay footage from its latest title. And while even some of the game’s biggest advocates agree thatPalworldis walking a thin line with its character designs, its roster of creatures still appears to be distinct enough to minimize the chances of copyright infringement litigation.
Palworld Is Off to a Strong Start in Spite of Polarizing Monster Designs
None of that is to say that the online reactions toPalworldare largely negative. On the contrary, the game started leading the Steam Top Sellers chart immediately after reaching early access and has over 370,000 concurrent players on Valve’s platform as of this writing, circa noon ET on January 19. With the weekend being just around the corner, it is conceivable thatPalworldwill further improve on that player peak figure over the next 48 hours.
Moreover, while a vocal section of Game Freak’s fandom appears to be unhappy with the game’s creature designs, such opinions have already been met with some online ridicule. A number ofPalworldfans have thus cheekily opined that theirPokemon-loving colleagues are more concerned with criticizing other monster taming games than holding their favorite developer accountable when it delivers lazy new entries in the franchise. Meanwhile, others have acknowledged thesimilarities betweenPalworldandPokemonbut insisted that they don’t care about them, arguing that Game Freak’s series is in dire need of competition.
Palworld
WHERE TO PLAY
In this game, you can peacefully live alongside mysterious creatures known as Pals or risk your life to drive off a ruthless poaching syndicate. Pals can be used to fight and breed, or they can be made to work on farms or factories. You can even sell them or eat them.Survival: In a harsh environment where food is scarce and vicious poachers roam, danger waits around every corner. To survive, you must tread carefully and make difficult choices…even if that means eating your own Pals when the time comes.Mounts & Exploration: Pals can be mounted to traverse the land, sea and sky—allowing you to traverse all kinds of environment as you explore the world.Collect all kinds of exciting Pals to fight, farm, build, and work for you in this completely new multiplayer, open world survival and crafting game!
