Palworld's Feybreak update is clearly a success as the game just hit its highest concurrent player count since launch
The big update is winning people back
Palworld's massive Feybreak update released December 23, and it seems to have revived the once dwindling player base as it's shot back into Steam's top 10.
Palworld had an incredibly impressive debut, peaking at 2,101,867 concurrent players on Steam back at launch, the third-highest on the platform ever. Since then, the number has gradually dwindled and settled, but as reported by Forbes, Palworld's concurrent player count shot up by nearly 800% this weekend.
The Feybreak update launched just before Christmas, and this is the first weekend after the holiday, so most of the family festivities are over and a lot of you are probably back home with your games.
At the time of writing, the concurrent player count is 137,309, which is huge for a game that isn't live service. The 24-hour peak is 212,817. The number of you actively playing the game shot up on December 23 when Feybreak released and has been steadily climbing every day since then, although it looks like it's about to hit a plateau.
It's no surprise Feybreak is what brought a lot of you back to the game, it's a huge update. It added built-in Nuzlocke and randomizer modes, a new island, new faction, new Pals, new level cap, new resources, new everything.
Palworld has also had its catching mechanics updated, making it a bit more different from Pokemon, maybe in an effort to appease Nintendo and stop its lawsuit.
A lot of you are very pleased with these changes. "This lawsuit hasn't stopped you, I see," one fan says. "Lesser studios would have crumpled in fear by now. You show bravery in the face of oppression, and I respect you for that."
Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter
Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more
"I speak for everyone here when I say we are proud of you for making this the best game of its genre," concurs a comment on Steam. "Palworld is everything Pokemon should be, but unfortunately the franchise is in the hands of greedy [...] people. I really hope Nintendo loses! I want justice for Palworld."
While you're here, check out some of the best games of 2024 that you may have missed.
I'm Issy, a freelancer who you'll now occasionally see over here covering news on GamesRadar. I've always had a passion for playing games, but I learned how to write about them while doing my Film and TV degrees at the University of Warwick and contributing to the student paper, The Boar. After university I worked at TheGamer before heading up the news section at Dot Esports. Now you'll find me freelancing for Rolling Stone, NME, Inverse, and many more places. I love all things horror, narrative-driven, and indie, and I mainly play on my PS5. I'm currently clearing my backlog and loving Dishonored 2.
The new free-to-play Ark mobile game "isn't just a port; it's a fully-fledged survival experience that rivals its console and PC counterparts" and has been downloaded over a million times
Palworld drops a massive update that further distances the survival game from Pokemon following the Nintendo lawsuit, and fans couldn't be more proud: "Justice for Palworld"