Fans of community sim style games have had quite a few options lately, but few have offered what Palia is trying to deliver. The newly announced game from fresh developer Singularity 6, formed a year ago by former Blizzard, Riot, and Epic developers among others, is bringing the community sim genre online in a big way. The MMO experience will put players in a beautiful, Breath of the Wild style open world full of colorful characters and things to explore. Palia will be going into a pre-Alpha later this summer.
“Palia is a gorgeous, cozy world that’s constantly evolving and features deep customization systems, a compelling cast of non-playable characters, and a robust Neighborhood system that allows players to forge communities of their own,” reads the official announcement. “Combining the welcoming atmosphere of a community sim with a massively multiplayer online experience, the game gives players the chance to be part of a global community of gamers as they collaborate, explore and progress. Palia’s innovative social matchmaking system ensures that friends and neighbors can always be close by”
We got to take a look at the game’s announcement trailer (which you can check out below) and ask the developer about it. The MMO aspect looks like a great addition to the community sim genre, and the game offers a lot of cool stuff that focuses on it. However, players can experience it solo if they wish and still enjoy quite a bit of what the game has to offer. This includes a vast world to explore, and characters to interact with. You can form bonds and relationships just like in Animal Crossing or Stardew Valley. And if you do enjoy multiplayer than all of this is enhanced by playing with friends or strangers online.
Customizing your home will probably be where a lot of players spend a large amount of their time. This is a personal space where you can invite others to see what you’ve created, but random players won’t be able to jump in or anything of that nature. Even if your friends are on different servers, the “social matchmaking” will allow you to all play together whenever you want. You can even form a “Neighborhood” to work and collaborate together similar to how guids work in other MMOs.
And working together will yield great results as you explore the vast world and uncover mysteries aplenty. In the world of Palia you play as a human, which in this seemingly post apocalyptic world makes you a rarity. “In Palia, humans are the legendary race, having disappeared thousands of years ago at the height of their grandeur and mastery of magic. Nobody in modern times knows why. Players awaken as human characters without explanation in a quaint, lakeside village where they’ll make their home and forge a new future for themselves and humanity.”
“Together with a massive online community, players will uncover the secrets to humanity’s past through an evolving narrative that will take years to fully unveil. Palia is a gorgeous, cozy world that’s constantly evolving and features deep customization systems, a compelling cast of non-playable characters, and a massive online community of other players to share and explore it with.”
You can sign up for the Palia pre-Alpha right here once it becomes available later this summer. The game will be launching for PC at a later date though we do not yet know if it will be free-to-play or what other platforms might become available later on.
