Comfy, Cozy, and Full of Life, ‘Palia’ Is a Wonderful Take on the MMO Genre That Welcomes Everybody (Review)

If you were to ask me what type of game is the most daunting to get into, I would say an MMO without taking a moment to think. Even with hundreds of hours in games like Final Fantasy XIV, there are still countless things that I have yet to properly discover. But Palia, on the other hand, hoped to streamline the MMO experience. Under the guise of a cozy life sim, this multiplayer experience took both my wife and me by surprise. Enough so that she let me get her a gaming PC of her own. Playing Palia for as long as I have, I’ve watched the game grow and evolve, and while there are still some technical glitches here and there, the game has turned into something that everyone can enjoy.

Imagine if ‘Stardew Valley’ or ‘Harvest Moon’ Were an MMO, and You’ve Got the Base Idea of ‘Palia’

Ever since the teaser trailer for Palia, I was fully on board. Over the years, I’ve found myself more and more interested in the idea of cozy games. Relaxing experiences, far removed from the typical rooty tooty point and shooty games that I’ve spent a large portion of my life playing. Starting with a small plot of land, it’s typically up to me to restore the natural world order, all while also interacting with a variety of unique NPCs throughout whichever land I find myself in. Taking that basic idea, putting a larger-scale story alongside it, and making it an always online MMO? That sounded like a dream come true.

Things were a little rough around the launch of Palia. The ideas were all there, but the execution wasn’t exactly “professional” by any means. With the recent launch of the Elderwood content, however, the rollout has been much more successful. After testing Palia on my PC, my PlayStation 5, and on both Xbox Series X and S, I was pleasantly surprised to see how good the launch went. I was, admittedly, nervous that my account would vanish or that performance would struggle on current-gen hardware. But to my genuine shock, it was a near-flawless launch on consoles. Something that I didn’t expect, especially after seeing how the game performed on the Nintendo Switch in the past.

Bold and Beautiful is the Name of the Game

Running on Unreal Engine 4, Palia is a genuinely great-looking game. It’s stylistic enough to be unmistakable from other games, all while being bouncy and embodying the look and feel of a Saturday morning cartoon. Character movements are incredibly exaggerated, environments look great, and it runs smoothly on current-generation hardware. It does struggle a bit on the original Nintendo Switch, but I would be shocked if a Nintendo Switch 2 patch wasn’t already in the works to get it up to snuff with the current level of performance. Playing on PlayStation 5, with Katie playing on an Xbox Series S, the game ran remarkably well.

Controller support for Palia is also implemented well. Even when we play on PC, we both tend to gravitate toward controller use. With well over 100 hours of gameplay spread out between both consoles and PC, we’ve never once found the controls cumbersome or hard to understand. While FFXIV may be the king of console MMOs with controller support, Palia deserves that second-place spot.

The World of ‘Palia’ Continues To Grow and Evolve, With a Story That Is Still a Work in Progress

While Palia has shed its Early Access title, it’s still a work in progress. This can be seen when it comes to the overarching narrative, which is currently stuck between a rock and a hard place. Fans, like myself, have been waiting for the story to continue progressing for quite a while, and with the Elderwood drop, we finally got some additional story quests. That being said, the narrative that is here is engaging enough, interesting enough, and exciting enough to keep players coming back for more. Now that we have another biome available to us, I do hope that the team at Singularity 6 can keep the story content flowing faster. Especially for players who are a little less patient than myself.

Yes, Palia is kind of an isekai story. A human, transported to an unknown land filled with strangers. It’s a little cliché to start. But as the world begins to get unpacked, Palia starts to get its own legs. It’s unclear how long it will be before the full story is finally told here, as we’re already nearly 2 years into the current narrative with no end in sight. But I’m very interested to see how things will continue from here.

Expansions, New Biomes, and Critters Cost Nothing. ‘Palia’ is as Free-To-Play as it Gets

The idea of free-to-play games can be a turn-off for some. Surely, there must be some hidden gacha mechanics or a pay-to-win element within the world of Palia, right? Well, even after spending as much time as I have here, I’ve yet to discover any sort of Gacha within this world. Everything you can purchase? It’s cosmetic. Clothing, gear skins, or pets. You can’t pay your way to victory in Palia, even if there is no real technical “end game”. It’s a game about crafting, hunting, fishing, and every other cozy thing in between. Are some of the cosmetics priced incredibly high? Yes, they can be. But seeing as cosmetics and pets are the way that Singularity 6 can continue developing Palia? I can understand it.

Throughout the story, there is never a moment when I have to spend money. If I bought an outfit, I did it to support the development team, or I got tired of my standard look. No part of the world is locked off for someone who didn’t buy a special item with real-world money. In-game currency is used to upgrade equipment, but players who want to stand out in the world can spend some money and make their character look exactly as they would like. Even without spending any cash, there are plenty of customization options available for all players.

I Hope You’re Ready To Grind Your Skills, Because ‘Palia’ Doesn’t Reward Quitters

Palia has a lot of different equipment available. If you want to get the most out of it, you’re going to need to grind. Even after the time I’ve spent in the world, I have yet to fully max out all of my skills. But that fills me with determination more than dread. Fishing in Palia may be some of the best I’ve found in a cozy game. Simple enough for anyone to understand how it works, yet engaging enough to keep even the most dedicated of players excited when a massive catch waits on the line.

Chopping trees, planting crops, hunting creatures, and so much more. There’s a lot to do in Palia, and the community makes it all the better. Players will call out spots on the map for community events, compliments are given to players on the way that they dress, and the world is surprisingly accepting of most players. If you’re going to grief or come into the world with a crass name, you may get called out for it. But even during my time, and with the influx of console players, I have yet to see much in the way of negativity.

Even After Nearly 2 Years in Development, ‘Palia’ Still Has Plenty of Bugs and Glitches

If there’s one thing to know about Palia, it’s that it’s not perfect by any means. It can be frustrating at times. Watching players rubber band around the world, struggle with climbing, or anything in between can be unintentionally hilarious. Characters can geek out, phase out of existence, but pop right back in. But even with these woes, Palia is just a joy to experience and play. So while they can be visually distracting, they don’t make the game any less fun to play. I do hope that they can address this in the future, but I’m willing to see the vision through to the end.

Palia is one of those games that puts fun and joy above everything else. It features an in-depth building and crafting system. There are plenty of quests to lose yourself in, and the world is big, bold, and beautiful. It’s the perfect way to introduce someone to the world of MMOs, and has a massive community of lovely fans. You can’t help but smile whenever you boot up Palia, and you’ll likely find your new favorite thing after trying it out for just a little while.

Verdict: Highly Recommended

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Palia is available now on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Palia is free to play, so a code was not provided for the sake of this review. Reviewed on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S.