Palworld dev defends player drop-off: ‘If you are still playing Palworld, we love you’
Like we've seen in the sharp decline of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the usual complaints that we're bored of Call of Duty churning out the same stuff every year, it's never been more evident that every bubble bursts eventually. Sadly for Palworld, some fear that the bubble has popped before it even inflated.
Pocket Pair's Pokemon-inspired (but legally distinct) survival game has been the talk of the town since it entered early access on January 19, quickly soaring to the top of Steam and staying there...until it was knocked down a peg or two by Helldivers 2. Gamers are fickle folk, but don't worry, the Palworld devs know you'll be back.
Palworld dev slams 'lazy' reports of player drop-off
We'll admit that we were among those who reported on Palworld's player drop-off, with a seemingly sharp downward trajectory. The problem is, when you're breaking records and sitting in second for the most concurrent players ever, the decline is much more noticeable.
News of Palworld's demise has been greatly exaggerated, and clapping back at clickbait headlines, Pocket Pair Community Manager "Bucky" has addressed the situation. Saying that early projections had the team hoping for a mere 50,000 players, the fact that Palworld hit 2,101,535 is quite the achievement.
Even at the time of writing, Palworld has a 24-hour peak of 510,907 and is currently in third place for most active players on Steam Charts. Bucky explains, "Some of you may have had your fun over the last three weeks and found yourself putting the game down."
They say the "Palworld has lost X% of its player base" discourse is 'lazy' but adds, "It's probably also a good time to step in and reassure those of you capable of reading past a headline that it is fine to take breaks from games." Saying fans don't need to feel bad for stepping away, they're confident that you'll be back.
What's next for Palworld?
Click to enlargeBucky promises, "New content will come, and it's going to be awesome, but these things take a little bit of time," which is something we've already seen in the Palworld roadmap. Alongside new raid bosses and regions, the big one is the much-hyped addition of PvP.
There's no word on when these features will be implemented, but as we said when reporting on the Palworld player count, it would be wise to fast-track the likes of PvP. We've already seen Pocket Pair try to tackle cheaters, and now, it's time to keep things fresh.
As for those who might feel bad for putting down Palworld, Bucky concludes, "If you are still playing Palworld, we love you. If you're no longer playing Palworld, we still love you, and we hope you'll come back for round 2 when you're ready." The question is, how long will these loyal Palworld players stick around for?
