Palworld's meteoric rise to popularity at the beginning of 2024 came somewhat out of the blue, and made a big impact on the gaming world. Thanks in part to its Steam Early Access status boosted by its inclusion on Xbox Game Pass, Palworld put up noteworthy sales records and concurrent player numbers in a very short window of time. Indie developer Pocketpair even stated it was a little unprepared to handle the massive amount of attention its crafting/survival and monster hunting mashup title garnered upon release, and the related support needed to keep it running smoothly, even as it is still in early access.