‘Pokemon with guns’ Palworld coming to Xbox Game Pass on day one
Pocketpair has given us a long-awaited update on Palworld, with the game that's described as "Pokemon with guns" finally getting a launch date and confirmation of Xbox Game Pass day one drop.
10th Jan 2024 11:39
Images via Pocketpair | The Pokemon Company
‘Pokemon with guns’ Palworld coming to Xbox Game Pass on day one
Pocketpair has given us a long-awaited update on Palworld, with the game that's described as "Pokemon with guns" finally getting a launch date and confirmation of Xbox Game Pass day one drop.
10th Jan 2024 11:39
Images via Pocketpair | The Pokemon Company
In the 28 years since the first Pokemon games released, we've seen plenty of advancements. Still, while we've moved from an overhead perspective of early games to the open-world expanse of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, there is something of a rinse-and-repeat formula.
You pick a starter, face your rival, battle through some gyms, and then take on the Elite Four. All of this is while some shadowy cabal watches from the sidelines. We're sorry to say it's got a bit tired, and while we still love polishing off our Pokedex, some of us are crying out for something different. Thankfully, Palworld offers that.
Palworld is Pokemon with guns
One of Pokemon's restrictions is the fact it's shackled to Nintendo, meaning it has to keep that family-friendly formula. Pokemon only faint, and while there's some dark mythology behind the likes of Drifloon and Poltchageist, most are rated E for Everyone. When it comes to Palworld, get ready for bloodshed.
We previously covered Palworld back in 2021, saying fans were divided by the hyper-violent spin on the Pokeverse. Feeling a bit like Call of Duty meets Pokemon, Palworld is the bloody distant cousin of Pokemon and is just different enough to avoid the talons of those infamous Nintendo legal eagles.
This murderous survival game lets you raise and train creatures known as Pal, which share some not-so-subtle similarities with Pokemon. The big difference here is that you can arm yourselves with weapons, raise Pals food, or even sell them into slavery. Poor Pikachu, avert your eyes.
Palworld has over 100 Pals to capture, but like we've seen the number of Pokemon bloom to over 1,000, it's a good place to start. Including open-world survival and crafting, Palworld looks like a 2024 evolution of the sometimes stale Pokemon series, boasting up to 32 players.
Palworld is coming to Game Pass
For obvious reasons, we don't ever see Nintendo releasing Palworld on the Switch. Thankfully, Microsoft has seen the money-making potential of this dystopian world of slavery and monster battles, meaning Palworld is coming to Game Pass. Better yet, it's getting a day one release on the gaming subscription service
Pocketpair has given us a long-awaited update on Palworld, promising that it's coming to Xbox Game Pass on January 19, coinciding with its early access launch on Steam. As Pokemon games are limited to Nintendo consoles, it's a major win that Xbox and PC owners will now be able to enjoy a Pokemon-lite experience - even if it comes with harvesting organs.
As we've seen with the gross-out humour of High on Life smashing Game Pass records, the service can give a massive boom to your titles. Palworld feels like it has a similar kind of humour, but will it be the next High on Life or just another cheap Pokemon clone that fails to live up to the bar Game Freak has set so high? Either way, we can't wait for our Pals to hit the trenches.
About The Author
Tom Chapman
Tom is Trending News Editor at GGRecon, with an NCTJ qualification in Broadcast Journalism and over seven years of experience writing about film, gaming, and television. With bylines at IGN, Digital Spy, Den of Geek, and more, Tom’s love of horror means he's well-versed in all things Resident Evil, with aspirations to be the next Chris Redfield.
