Palworld
Developed by Pocketpair · Pocketpair
Survival Crafting · PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S · 2026-07-10
“The Pokemon-with-guns phenomenon is finally leaving Early Access, and it is doing it while Nintendo's lawyers are still in the room.”
After roughly two and a half years and a launch that broke the internet, Pocketpair is taking Palworld to version 1.0 on July 10. The all-in-one monster-collecting survival game that the internet nicknamed Pokemon with guns is adding the long-teased World Tree area and a second major island, roughly doubling the map, plus the biggest batch of new Pals yet. For a scrappy independent studio, this is the victory lap.
And what a run it was. One million copies in eight hours, two million in a day, eight million in six days, a Steam peak north of 2.1 million concurrent players, and 32 million players across platforms. Whatever you think of the creature designs that look suspiciously familiar, the numbers are not an accident. People genuinely love the gameplay loop under the shock-value marketing.
The elephant in the courtroom is Nintendo. The Pokemon Company and Nintendo filed a patent infringement suit in Tokyo in September 2024, Pocketpair has been shipping patches quietly altering similar mechanics, and the legal timeline runs into late 2026. So Palworld is graduating from Early Access while still being actively sued by the most litigious mascot in gaming. Bold. Sally respects the nerve, and will be watching both the game and the docket.
- 01
A genuinely addictive monster-collecting survival loop that earned tens of millions of players.
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A huge 1.0 expansion, the World Tree plus a second island roughly doubling the map.
- 03
The largest batch of new Pals yet, feeding the core catch-and-build hook.
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An underdog independent studio delivering blockbuster scale on its own terms.
- 01
Creature designs that critics keep calling Pokemon lookalikes, the accusation that started a lawsuit.
- 02
Shock humor about animal abuse and labor that lands as edgy for edgy's sake.
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Launching 1.0 while an active Nintendo patent suit hangs over the whole thing.
- 04
A reputation built as much on controversy as on craft, which cuts both ways.
Survival crafting fans who want a huge, chaotic, monster-filled sandbox and do not mind that the creatures look like they wandered in from a lawsuit.
Anyone who finds the shock humor grating or wants their monster-catcher free of legal asterisks and Pokemon deja vu.
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A full teardown from €2,99. No mercy.