Summary
Rumors are now abound that Chinese gaming giantTencentis making two new games in the same vein asPalworld,capitalizing on the sleeper hit’s genre-mixing popularity.Palworldhas sold millions of copiessince its release in January 2024, which is why it’s not surprising that a developer looking for its next big profitable project would look to it for inspiration.
Tencent Gamesis the gaming division of the Chinese multinational conglomerate of the same name, which in itself groups together a number of smaller studios that produce its hits. Notable development teams under Tencent Games include Riot Games, LightSpeed Studios, and TiMi Studio Group, which respectively producedLeague of Legends,Undawn, andCall of Duty: Mobile, to name a few. It’s through these properties that the holdings company has made its most money, and now it’s banking onPalworldclones being the next big thing.
Anew report from Bloombergrevealed that LightSpeed and TiMi are apparently each working on their ownPalworldclone, hoping to capture their own spark of popularity for Tencent. It’s said that Tencent is looking for the next big gaming hit, especially after its games performance declined by 2% during the 2023 holiday season. The reason for two studios under Tencent working on the same kind of game is to eventually grind out quality output through heated internal competition, as it had managed to achieve success in the form of TiMi’sHonor of Kingsand LightSpeed’sPeacekeeper Elitethrough this approach.
Tencent Is Not Having a Good Year So Far
Tencent’s attempt to recapture lightning in a bottle comes in the face of some pretty big challenges it’s run into so far in 2024. First, areport released by Reuters back in February 2024revealed that the company hadcanceled aNiermobile gamethat had been in development for two years. While fans of the game had preferred a new mainline entry on consoles, those who had wanted something new from the franchise may have been disappointed by this news.
Then, another “strategic shift” within Tencent reportedly forced it todelay the upcomingAssassin’s Creed Jadeto 2025. This mobile game in theAssassin’s Creedfranchise—which will supposedly play just like its console and PC counterparts—is set in ancient China.
Itslatest misfire was the zombie shooterUndawn, which features the likeness of legendary Hollywood actor Will Smith front and center. It released back in June 2023 after costing $140 million to produce and underperformed, reporting only $300,000 in revenue in February 2024. It didn’t help thatUndawndidn’t seem to be well-known outside China, with many gamers expressing surprise that Smith was involved in the game. With all this flop and its other unfortunate difficulties, the company may need to try every play possible to find a new runaway hit—it’s now only a matter of whether gamers will bite.
Palworld
WHERE TO PLAY
In this game, you can peacefully live alongside mysterious creatures known as Pals or risk your life to drive off a ruthless poaching syndicate. Pals can be used to fight and breed, or they can be made to work on farms or factories. You can even sell them or eat them.Survival: In a harsh environment where food is scarce and vicious poachers roam, danger waits around every corner. To survive, you must tread carefully and make difficult choices…even if that means eating your own Pals when the time comes.Mounts & Exploration: Pals can be mounted to traverse the land, sea and sky—allowing you to traverse all kinds of environment as you explore the world.Collect all kinds of exciting Pals to fight, farm, build, and work for you in this completely new multiplayer, open world survival and crafting game!
