Fans often compare Palworld and Pokémon to each other, but not everyone is convinced that the Pikachu franchise will be affected by the bold new arrival.
Palworld is often cited as being a mix between Pokémon and games like Ark or Valhiem. It combines capturing monsters with base building and surviving in a dangerous world, creating an exciting mix that has propelled Palworld to the top of the Steam charts in a matter of days.
Much of the discussion about the two franchises has focused on Palworld’s similarities to Pokémon. More importantly, how many Pals are a little too similar to iconic Pokémon, leading to accusations of plagiarism from the fanbase?
But what about Pokémon? Will Palworld’s incredible success affect future plans for new Pokémon games? Is it possible that The Pokémon Company left money on the table by not producing a survival and creation game?
Pokémon fans are divided on Palworld’s influence
A user on the Pokémon Reddit created a meme thread comparing Palworld’s influence to that of Temtem, which was seen as a potential rival to Pokémon but never reached the heights some expected. This led to debate about Palworld’s influence on Pokémon in the future.
“It actually has no impact because the overwhelming majority of The Pokémon Company’s sales come from merchandise and that will never be threatened,” one user said, “Pokémon games can be mediocre for eternity but as long as kids are still buying stuff with Pikachu on it, there won’t be any real consequences.”
“Pokémon will never have competition. It’s the most iconic game, and they know it. This is why most recent games have been minimalist copy and paste,” one user wrote, while another said, “Yet they almost never innovate. Palworld isn’t even remotely similar.”
“As pointed out in all the different posts on Palworld,” another user said, “It’s hardly competition because they’re not the same gender, nor are they targeting the same demographics.”
“Ark would be more specific. Pokémon is not a survival game. Nor are they aimed at children. Yokai Watch is the only one that managed to make a small dent in Pokémon in Japan because they also target kids, but that didn’t even last.”
Palworld had an incredible first week, but Pokémon has decades of success to fall back on. The Pokémon Company isn’t likely to be scared off by Palworld, especially since it’s not even on a Nintendo console yet.
If Palworld continues its streak of success, then we might see a response from The Pokémon Company, but until then, it’s unlikely that Pikachu and his friends will get around to strapping on ammo belts and building forts in the Kanto campaign.
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