Summary
Palworldhas become a breakout hit among players, quickly surpassing titles likeCounter-Strike 2,Cyberpunk 2077, andElden Ringto become the game with the second-highest concurrent player count in Steam’s history. Despite the controversy surrounding the similarities between the Pals ofPalworldand the creatures from thePokemonseries, the title continues to increase in sales while still in its early access period. However, the similarities betweenPalworldandPokemondon’t end with their gameplay and creature design, as comparing the game’s sales to those ofPokemon Scarlet and Violetreveals an interesting trend.
Much of the online discussion surroundingPalworldis not about the game’s sales or player counter, but about howPalworldwalks the line between drawing inspiration fromPokemonand straight-up plagiarizing the franchise.The Pokemon Company recently issued a statement aboutPalworld, saying that they have not granted permission to use anyPokemonassets in the game and are investigating for copyright infringement. While this statement doesn’t necessarily meanPalworldis guilty of plagiarism, the fact that The Pokemon Company acknowledged it shows they view the game as a serious competitor, andPalworld’s sales date backs up this idea.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
5 Million
19 Million
Palworld’s viral success is impressive for an indie title with little marketing leading up to release, but thePokemonfranchise is the highest-grossing media franchise in the world, having grossed a whopping $150 billion in its lifetime as of 2023. Still, compared to the juggernaut that isPokemon,Palworldhas been able to hold its own against individual entries in the series. The sales numbers show that even withPokemon Scarlet and Violetcounting sales of both versions,Palworldcan still act as a true competitor to Game Freak’s iconic franchise.
Palworld Boasts Some Impressive Sales Figures Compared to Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
It’s interesting to note thatPokemon Scarlet and Violetstarted off with much stronger sales thanPalworld, selling twice as many copies in the first three days after their release. WhilePokemon Scarlet and Violetreached 10 million copies sold within that first three-day period,Palworldhad only sold five million. This is still an impressive feat given thatPokemonis an incredibly recognizable franchise with a huge marketing budget for its Gen 9 games, whilePalworldsales shot up very quickly despite very little pre-release marketing and coming from a smaller development team.
Where things get even more impressive forPalworldis in the total number of copies sold compared toPokemon Scarlet and Violet. As of September 2023,Pokemon Scarlet and Violetwere sitting at 23.23 million units sold over the course of nearly a year. On the other hand,Palworldis already quickly closing in on that number, with a total of 19 million units sold in only a few weeks since release, showing that the game is on a much faster sales trajectory thanPokemon’s Gen 9 games, which suffered from a myriad of technical issues on launch.
However,Pokemon Scarlet and Violetare only available on the Nintendo Switch, limiting their user base to owners of this console. Meanwhile,Palworldis available on PC and Xbox, as well as on Game Pass, which gives the game a much larger pool of potential players to draw from. Still, with 12 million units sold on Steam and 7 million units sold on Xbox,Palworldhas pulled off the impressive feat of outpacing sales for a franchise as popular asPokemonwhile being an indie title that is still in early access.
