Palworld developer Pocketpair has released an update for the Xbox and Windows PC version of the game that addresses some of the issues players are having.
The smash hit ‘Pokémon with guns’ survival and crafting game launched in early access form on January 19 on Steam as well as Xbox consoles and Windows PC, but the Xbox version lags behind the Steam version in a number of key areas.
For example, Palworld players can create and join dedicated servers that enable up to 32 players to play in the same world and create guilds together. But on Xbox and Windows PC (so, everyone playing on Game Pass), Palworld players cannot create or join dedicated servers, which means online co-op is limited to 2-4 players. Crossplay between Xbox and Steam is also currently unavailable.
Palword Xbox players had assumed they were playing an older build of the game, given some of the missing features, but Pocketpair denied this was the case, insisting both versions will always be different until crossplay is enabled. The lack of parity across Xbox and Steam, Pocketpair said, had to do with updates having to work their way through Microsoft’s certification process, whereas on Steam there is no such hurdle.
Here are the Xbox Palworld patch notes in full:
[The following issues have been fixed]
<Xbox>
・When starting the game app, it goes black and cannot proceed further.
<Microsoft Store PC version>
・When starting the game app, it goes black and cannot proceed further.
・Controller is not recognized
・Key guide display is not displayed correctly
・Exit game button is not implemented
Pocketpair is yet to properly explain Palworld's lack of dedicated servers on Xbox and Windows PC. Last week, Pocketpair said: “We’d like to have dedicated servers on Xbox but it’s unfortunately not up to us and is quite difficult to negotiate at this time!” a Pocketpair representative said. “But… we are trying!”
It's unclear what Pocketpair means when it says the addition of dedicated servers on Xbox is "not up to us", when other games do have dedicated servers on Xbox. IGN has asked for comment but has yet to hear back.
While Palworld is a smash hit, it is not without controversy. Pocketpair has said its staff have received death threats amid Pokémon "rip-off" claims, and Nintendo moved quickly to remove an eye-catching Pokémon mod. Palworld’s enormous launch has seen its servers struggle, too.
Check out IGN’s Palworld Early Access Review in Progress to find out what we thought.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
