Summary
Developer Pocketpair’s breakout hit,Palworld, hit early access on Steam and Xbox Game Pass earlier this year and took off shortly thereafter, catapulting the open-world survival crafting monster-catching mashup title to huge popularity.Palworldmanaged record numbers of concurrent users and sales in its opening few weeks, capturing the attention of millions of players with its take on the mix of genres, and continues to enjoy a healthy and active player base. Perhaps unavoidably, though,Palworldalso drew some heat for its clear inspirations from thePokemonfranchise, which, depending on opinion, may go too far in some cases.
Despite this criticism and subsequent talk of possible legal action (though no proceedings etc. have taken place at this time), the studio has been hard at work since, continuing to tweak various functionalities and introducing more features intoPalworld.Andwhile it remains a somewhat thorny topic as fans continue to discussPalworld’s close resemblances toPokemon, there are other aspects ofPalworldthat clearly delineate it; one of which can be seen front and center with its Paldeck entry regarding Petallia.
Palworld’s Petallia Addresses an Element Pokemon Usually Brushes Aside
The Birds, The Bees, and Palworld’s Petallia
As mentioned, although the similarities between the two properties are apparent at a glance, delving deeper intoPalworld’s overall loreas it stands, and in particular, some of its bestiary descriptions begin to paint a different picture in a few notable areas versusPokemon. These are often items that, given its long-established brand and reputation for all-ages-appropriate content,Pokemoncould never really address. For example, the reproductive capabilities/physiology of the titles' fictional whimsical creatures may often be amusingly pondered by dedicated and curious fans, even if there is no explanation to be found within the games themselves.Palworldhas no such self-imposed restrictions in the wayPokemondoes in this area, and thus can touch on topics that are a tad more mature in waysPokemonusually isn’t.
As such, similar to how a few ofPalworld’s Paldeck entries veer into subjects not contained inPokemon, the official description of Petallia states:
A Pal that transforms into a massive plant when at the end of its life. Once every ten years, a beautiful flower blooms and a new Petallia is born.
WhilePokemonusually outright ignores or sweeps the issue of ‘mon reproductive practices under the rug, the fact that in this casePalworldbroaches the topic directly and seems to explicitly confirm that at least some of its critters have a canon reproductive cycle as a natural component of its strange world, shows that developers considered this enough to include information about it in-universe. The actual description could even be stretched further to perhaps offer an explanation for Petallia’s relative rarity, although players can still find them roaming one ofPalworld’s Wildlife Sanctuariesas well as an Alpha Boss, which also has the interesting and possibly related detail of having a longer respawn window than other Alphas.
Some fans may not worry at all about the specifics of Pal and/or Pokemon procreation habits too much, as these aren’t necessarily majorly relevant to the games’ overall loops, although it might certainly make for some humorous thoughts and speculation - such as how the above element works whenbreeding other Palswith Petallia. Still, sincePalworldshows it is willing to tackle the issue of its creatures' reproductive systems in certain instances, players might appreciate this inclusion, and it can serve to differentiate the two franchises as well as satisfy those fans who are interested in knowing more of the ins and outs of its monsters' biology.
