The new MMO Palia has some interesting approaches. Social features such as housing and relationships with NPCs are at the forefront. While you can fight, it is optional. The game is being developed by veterans from Blizzard and Riot Games.
What kind of MMO is it? Palia visually resembles Breath of the Wild and is gameplay-wise inspired by Animal Crossing and The Sims. The MMO revolves around shared activities that you can experience with other players, including:
- Housing with over a thousand different items
- Various activities such as fishing, cooking, hunting, and farming
- Customizing your own outfits
- Relationships and friendships with NPCs
In Palia, there is an option to fight creatures from the environment, but that is meant to be purely optional. If you wish, you can completely avoid fighting. There will be no PvP at all.
You can get a first glimpse of the MMO in the announcement trailer released on YouTube:
Who is behind Palia? The new MMO is developed by Singularity 6, a developer studio consisting of veterans from Blizzard, Riot Games, and Zynga.
The developers completely forgo crowdfunding. Back in 2019, we reported that the studio received investments of $16.5 million for its idea of Palia.
Palia aims to differentiate itself from action MMOs with social features
What is the MMO about? Palia is said to have an interesting backstory. Once, humans were a powerful race but disappeared from the world thousands of years ago. Now, you play as one of those humans who has just awakened in a ruin.
You start by building your own house in the world and forming friendships not only with creatures but also with other players:
- You can form friendships and relationships with NPCs and learn their stories
- Other players can visit your house and help you decorate
- There is also a guild function, which in Palia is called “Neighborhood”
The game world is also expected to feature a dynamic day/night cycle. The story is set to expand over the years.
What about combat? The combat system seemingly avoids classes, instead opting for a skill system (via MMORPG.com). In the open world, there will be areas where players can fight other creatures. However, you do not have to seek out these areas.
The colleagues from MMORPG.com also inquired about dungeons. They are planned, but it sounded like they would be implemented only in the future and after the release.
Founder Anthony Leung has previously discussed the combat system and revealed that they aim to differentiate themselves from many current MMOs with their system (via Gamesindustry.biz):
The game industry has generally focused heavily on action-oriented, competitive games. […] With our first product, we want to create something that perhaps contains only a few competitive elements.
There is, however, a real chance that we will succeed in a market that is underserved due to lack of competition.
In the same interview, he also emphasized that the developers want to build a strong and, above all, positive community.
How will Palia be funded? Regarding monetization, the developers will comment later. However, they told MMORPG.com that players will be “very pleased with the discussion about pricing.”
When will Palia be released? Currently, there is no release timeframe. However, you can already sign up for the pre-alpha on the official Palia website, which is supposed to start “soon.”
On which platforms will the MMO be released? The pre-alpha is expected to take place only on PC. Whether a version for consoles is planned is currently unknown.
What do you think of the new MMO? Does Palia appeal to you, or do you need action-packed fights?
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