Pocketpair is on the fence about making Palworld a live-service game after analyzing how Fall Guys made the switch

Pocketpair is thinking about making Palworld a live-service game at some point in the future

Pocketpair

Pocketpair is thinking about making Palworld a live-service game at some point in the future, studio CEO Takuro Mizobe recently told ASCII Japan (thanks, Automaton). However, the challenges associated with such an undertaking may be too much to handle – in the monster-catching game's near future, at least.

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“The most important thing is whether the players want it or not,” Mizobe said, though he mentioned other considerations the studio has to bear in mind as well, even if players do want it. “When you think about it from a business perspective, making (Palworld) a live-service game would extend its lifespan and make it more stable in terms of profitability. However, the game was not initially designed with that approach in mind, so there would be many challenges involved in taking it down the live-service path.”

Mizobe said part of the challenge stems from launching Palworld as a buy-to-play game, without an existing structure Pocketpair could use to make an easy switch. Most free-to-play games that offer cosmetics or other incentives start out like that, Mizobe said. Pocketpair examined cases of successful changes from paid to free, including PUBG and Fall Guys, and Mizobe said that it took several years for both games to make the switch

“While I understand that the live-service model is good for business, it’s not that easy,” he said.

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Whatever Pocketpair ends up doing with Palworld, Mizobe said the team still plans on adding to the existing game during early access, with more Pals, more areas, and a wider variety of things to do and build.