Is Palworld on Game Pass?

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RPG survival shooter Palworld is going to be on Xbox Game Pass - but there's a catch.

Palworld
(Image credit: Pocketpair)

Is Palworld on Game Pass? Xbox having its own Pokemon equivalent is something that'll make a lot of prospective gamers intrigued, and even more so when it's revealed that said equivalent has a lot of cute and colourful mascots wielding large, automatic rifles and rocket launchers. But while Palworld has been confirmed for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and PC alike, is it going to be on the Game Pass subscription service? Yes - but it's worth discussing that there'll be a couple of limitations.

Yes, Palworld will be on Game Pass

Palworld game pass

(Image credit: Pocketpair, Inc.)

Palworld has a release date of 19 January 2024, and will be coming to Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass on release day, free to download and play for anybody who has the service on either Xbox console or PC (the devs have stated that they do not currently have plans for a PS5 port).

However, this is where the issue of Palworld crossplay raises its head. We go into more detail at the attached guide, but Palworld does not have crossplay between platforms - and it reads PC Game Pass and Steam as different platforms. Though this won't be an issue for many, it does mean that PC Game Pass players and Steam players won't be able to play multiplayer together, despite both being on PC, at least until crossplay is added "as soon as possible". 

There's no further detail on when crossplay will be added at time of writing, but there shouldn't be any barrier for all those on Game Pass, Xbox and PC alike, to play Palworld cooperatively.

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Joel Franey
Joel Franey
Guides Editor, GamesRadar+

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and Very Tired Man with a BA from Brunel University, a Masters from Sussex University and a decade working in games journalism, often focused on guides coverage but also in reviews, features and news. His love of games is strongest when it comes to groundbreaking narratives like Disco Elysium, UnderTale and Baldur's Gate 3, as well as innovative or refined gameplay experiences like XCOM, Sifu, Arkham Asylum or Slay the Spire. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at Eurogamer, Gfinity, USgamer, SFX Magazine, RPS, Dicebreaker, VG247, and more.