Microsoft to Boost 'Palworld' as a Record-Breaking Game Pass Hit

The gaming landscape has witnessed the meteoric rise of Palworld, primarily on PC, but a significant portion of its player base has emerged from its collaboration with Microsoft, courtesy of its Xbox Game Pass debut.

A New Titan in Gaming

Palworld's Player Milestones

In just two weeks since its launch, Palworld has amassed a staggering 19 million players, with the game maintaining a daily count of a million concurrent players. This surge in popularity has rocketed Palworld to become Steam’s second most played game in history.

🎉Total number of players exceeds 19 million🎉

It's been less than two weeks since #Palworld was released, thank you!

・Steam: 12 million~ copies
・Xbox: 7 million~ players

We will continue to prioritize fixing bugs!
Thank you for your continued support of #Pocketpair! pic.twitter.com/twgAeYVL07

— Palworld (@Palworld_EN) January 31, 2024

Xbox Game Pass Success Story

With seven million players joining through Xbox, Palworld celebrates being the third largest launch on Game Pass and the most successful third-party game to debut on the service. It stands just behind behemoths like Starfield and Halo Infinite in terms of launch success.

Microsoft's Strategic Move

Collaborating for Enhanced Performance

Microsoft has recognized the potential in Palworld's unexpected hit status and is seizing the opportunity to deepen its involvement. The tech giant has announced plans to work directly with the game's developer, Pocketpair, to refine the Xbox version and possibly provide broader support.

Press Release Insights

A recent press release outlined Microsoft's commitment: "We are collaborating with Pocketpair to support the Xbox iterations of Palworld. Our contributions include dedicated server support, engineering resources for GPU and memory optimization, expedited Palworld updates for our players, and overall optimization for our platform."

Editor's Comments

The explosive growth of Palworld, especially through Xbox Game Pass, underscores the platform's power to catapult games into the spotlight. Microsoft's direct involvement with Pocketpair is a strategic play to bolster the game's performance and ensure its longevity on Xbox. This partnership not only enhances the gaming experience for current players but also sets a precedent for future third-party collaborations, potentially attracting more developers to the Game Pass ecosystem.