When you think of Palworld, the phrase "Pokemon with guns" likely comes to mind first. This shorthand, popularized on the internet, has been a double-edged sword for the game's developers at Pocketpair. While it certainly contributed to Palworld's rapid rise in popularity, it's a label that the team, including communications director and publishing manager John 'Bucky' Buckley, would rather shake off. Buckley shared his thoughts on this during a talk at the Game Developers Conference and in a subsequent interview with us.
Palworld was first revealed to the public in June 2021 at Indie Live Expo, an indie gaming event in Japan. It received a warm reception from the Japanese audience, but it was the Western media's quick branding of the game as "Pokemon with guns" that truly catapulted it into the spotlight. This label has stuck with the game ever since, despite the team's efforts to distance themselves from it.
In our interview, Buckley clarified that Pokemon was never part of the initial pitch for Palworld. Instead, the team drew inspiration from ARK: Survival Evolved, with many developers being fans of the game. Their previous title, Craftopia, also borrowed elements from ARK. The goal was to create a game that expanded on ARK's concepts, focusing heavily on automation and giving each creature unique personalities and abilities.
Buckley acknowledged that the "Pokemon with guns" label did help boost Palworld's success. He mentioned that Dave Oshry from New Blood Interactive even trademarked the domain "Pokemonwithguns.com," which further fueled the game's viral spread. However, Buckley expressed frustration that some people still believe this label accurately describes the gameplay, which he insists is far from the truth.
Interestingly, Buckley doesn't see Pokemon as a direct competitor to Palworld, citing minimal audience crossover. He views ARK as a closer parallel but doesn't feel Palworld is in direct competition with any specific game, not even Helldivers 2, despite a significant overlap in player bases. Buckley believes the concept of competition in gaming is often exaggerated for marketing purposes, emphasizing that the real challenge is timing releases amidst a sea of games.
If Buckley could choose a different tagline for Palworld, he suggested something like, "Palworld: It's Kind of Like ARK if ARK Met Factorio and Happy Tree Friends." While he admits it's not as catchy as "Pokemon with guns," it more accurately reflects the game's unique blend of survival, automation, and quirky creature design.
In our full interview, Buckley also touched on the potential for Palworld to come to the Nintendo Switch 2, the possibility of Pocketpair being acquired, and more. You can read the entire discussion [ttpp]here[ttpp].
