Palworld announced a new spin-off on Steam set in the world of colorful monsters. The timing of the announcement could hardly be more inappropriate.
What kind of game is this? The developer team at Pocketpair announced Palworld: Palfarm. This is not a survival game with catching mechanics, but a cozy farming game.
- Along with the Pals, you will build your own Palfarm. You grow ingredients which you can then use to create dishes. Meanwhile, you collect materials to expand your farm.
- The Pals retain the special abilities they have in the game. This includes skills such as watering plants.
- With gifts, you can strengthen your relationships with the Pals and the human inhabitants of the island. It might even lead to a wedding.
- Hostile Pals may occasionally attack your farm, which you will then need to defend.
- As in Palworld itself, there will be an online co-op. You can design your farm together with your friends.
Many of the points are reminiscent of the original Palworld. New, however, is the marketplace where you can sell your grown plants. In return, you can buy seeds from other residents and Pals.
In the trailer, you can see some of the mentioned features. Unfortunately, it is still unknown when exactly the game will be released. Nonetheless, the timing of the announcement is a bit delicate.
Palworld follows in the footsteps of Nintendo
Why is it bad right now? Nintendo has filed a patent infringement lawsuit along with the Pokémon Company. The company has registered a patent regarding the game mechanics of summoning characters and letting them fight against others. The patent has even been officially granted now. A ruling is still pending.
In addition, Nintendo unveiled its new game Pokopia just a few weeks ago. It is also a farming sim where you gather resources and build a settlement. Only, here no Pals help, but Pokémon.
Also, under the official YouTube video, some viewers have noticed this. Some joke that there will soon be a patent for farming and that this is a “legendary dispute.”
What a fan also notices: The text boxes are very similar to those in Animal Crossing. Other aspects also recall Nintendo’s cozy game, in which players move to an island or a town and gather materials to craft furniture.
Fans believe that this could lead to another legal dispute. However, it remains to be seen how the announcement will influence current events.
The approval of the new patent is considered controversial. A lawyer believes that the approval is a “painful failure of the US patent system.” You can find his reasoning on MeinMMO: Lawyer comments on the dispute between Nintendo and Palworld, finds the approval of the new patent “highly unusual”
