Since its early access release in January 2024,Palworldhas established itself with enough unique mechanics that make it more than just aPokemonclone. While the game is similar to its highly successful competition in exploring a world to capture and collect a variety of creatures, one of the ways it separates itself is with itsexceptionally difficult Alpha Palsroaming the overworld.
As players explore the islands ofPalworld, they will run into the numerous Pals that inhabit them. Among them are variants known as Alpha Pals, large boss-type creatures that players will want to avoid encountering early due to their toughness and low capture rate. They bring about a certain liveliness to their game’s overworld that the recentPokemongames' creatures are unable to replicate. Given the likelihood that futurePokemongames try an open world again, subsequent titles have much to gain from adapting and modifying Alpha Pals.
Alpha Pals and Why Future Pokemon Games Need Their Own Version of Them
Alpha Pals benefitPalworldby acting as an extra objective that livens up an environment. Their daunting presence alone can compel players to stray away from the main path and make them traverse areas they otherwise might not have bothered with. With futurePokemontitles likely looking atScarletandViolet’s open-world designas the path forward, the lack of monsters that urge further overworld expeditions from both games should be seen as an opportunity to include them down the line. Alpha Pals allow for many other opportunities:
Considering thatPalworldis a blend of survival and creature-collecting aspects, the difficulty of learninghow to capture Alpha Palsalso works to the game’s benefit. Alpha Pals are found in predefined locations that are spread about evenly throughout the world. Discovering these areas creates an engaging objective that further reinforces path deviation and revisits. Even after finding them, players must still prepare the necessary equipment to deal with dangerous environmental hazards before engaging in battle. Future open-worldPokemongames could benefit from replicating these features as they add more layers to the monster-capturing process.
What Alpha Pals Have That Titan Pokemon Needed
Alpha Pals wouldn’t be totally unprecedented in Nintendo’s franchise;Pokemon ScarletandViolet’s Titan Pokemonwould be a reasonable point of comparison to Alpha Pals. Both are massive creatures whose formidable strength can be visually ascertained in the overworld. An important difference between them is that Titan Pokemon do not roam around their respective areas and only present themselves when players have reached a certain point in the game’s plot. Although tying these powerful creatures to a game’s narrative can lead to interesting developments, it also means that they are limited compared to their Alpha Pal counterpart.
Pocket Pair’s decision to give Alpha Pals immediate availability provides players with a sense of discovery, communicating that they might have memorable encounters willingly or accidentally at any moment. With the possibility of the nextPokemongame being another open-world adventure, its version of formidable monsters could benefit from being a hybrid of the Titan Pokemon’s story-driven narrative and the freedom and accessibility of Alpha Pals.
ShouldfuturePokemongames add or take influence fromPalworldfeatures, it can potentially lead to innovations in the open-world and monster-catching genres. With the way Alpha Pals bring life and shape the environments ofPalworld, Game Freak can use them as a valuable learning tool for developing the nextPokemongame’s overworld bosses.
Palworld
WHERE TO PLAY
In this game, you can peacefully live alongside mysterious creatures known as Pals or risk your life to drive off a ruthless poaching syndicate. Pals can be used to fight and breed, or they can be made to work on farms or factories. You can even sell them or eat them.Survival: In a harsh environment where food is scarce and vicious poachers roam, danger waits around every corner. To survive, you must tread carefully and make difficult choices…even if that means eating your own Pals when the time comes.Mounts & Exploration: Pals can be mounted to traverse the land, sea and sky—allowing you to traverse all kinds of environment as you explore the world.Collect all kinds of exciting Pals to fight, farm, build, and work for you in this completely new multiplayer, open world survival and crafting game!
