Palworld, an action-adventure survival game developed by Pocketpair, has quickly become a sensation within the gaming community. In just four days after its release, the title soared to the top of the Steam charts, boasting six million copies sold. However, alongside its rapid success, the game has sparked a plagiarism debate, with many users on social media raising concerns about perceived similarities between Palworld’s creature designs and those found in Pokémon titles. One user on the platform X highlighted side-by-side comparisons of 3D models from both games, alleging blatant copying.
In Palworld, players encounter Pokémon-like creatures called Pals, which can be captured and utilized for various activities, including combat, exploration, and building within the game’s expansive world. The game’s mechanics have led some critics to label it “Pokémon with Guns.” While some have characterized these creatures as homages or parodies of the beloved Game Freak franchise, accusations of outright plagiarism regarding in-game assets have emerged.
On Sunday, X user @byofrog shared detailed comparisons of character models from Palworld and Pokémon games, initially drawing attention to a likeness between a creature from Palworld and the Cinderace model from Pokémon Sword and Shield. This prompted a series of additional comparisons, intensifying the scrutiny of Pocketpair’s design choices since the game’s early access launch on January 19. The debate has ignited a discourse among gamers and developers about the influences in Palworld, with opinions divided between those who accuse the developers of plagiarism and those who defend the originality of the game.
Eric Covington, a former designer at Blizzard, added to the conversation by retweeting @byofrog’s analysis, stating that the striking similarities in character models could not have been coincidental. “To ‘accidentally’ create a complex model mesh with such closely matching proportions is near impossible. To replicate that improbability across your entire roster… it doesn’t add up,” he remarked on X. In contrast, some voices in the industry, such as Dinga Bakaba, co-creative director at Arkane Lyon, argued that Palworld successfully integrates a blend of gameplay elements from various well-known titles, including Pokémon and Fortnite. “As a game designer, I’m surprised that the claims of laziness persist. Copying an idea doesn’t equate to lazy development, as even sequels require substantial effort for advancement,” Bakaba emphasized in a series of posts.
Yeah, I’m surprised by how quickly this is escalating. I’ll try to organize my own hot take-ish thoughts in a thread, separating concept, execution, and dev. First: it’s not a Pokemon-like game. Digimon is. And even if it was, so what? (cries in FPS, BRs, Souls, hero shooters…) https://t.co/6jnWkfiANE
— Dinga Bakaba (@DBakaba) January 21, 2024
In response to the ongoing comparisons, @byofrog clarified in a subsequent post that while the 3D models bore notable resemblances, they were not exact replicas. “I want to stress that while some similarities exist, these meshes are not literally ‘exact’ copies of one another,” the user explained.
Game director and CEO of Pocketpair, Takuro Mizobe, addressed the plagiarism claims on X, revealing that the development team had received what appeared to be death threats related to the game’s reception. “I have encountered a variety of opinions regarding Palworld. However, all aspects of its production are supervised by a team, including myself, for which I take full responsibility,” Mizobe asserted in his post (translated from Japanese). “I kindly ask for respect towards the artists involved in Palworld.”
In the midst of these controversies, Pocketpair confirmed on Tuesday that Palworld had achieved six million sales within its first four days, with peak concurrent players exceeding 1.7 million. The studio also communicated its commitment to addressing reported bugs and issues. At the time of reporting, Palworld had reached the rank of third-highest all-time peak concurrent players in Steam history, surpassing notable titles such as Lost Ark and Dota 2, and currently leads the platform in player numbers, nearly double that of Counter Strike 2.
