Palworld Is the Eyebleach I Needed After Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s Hideous Graphics

Palworld shares some things in common with Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, but terrible graphics aren’t one of them. Despite having gameplay elements, it’s impossible to look at the titles the same way. Sure, Palworld added guns, butchery, and forced labor, but the eye-straining graphics of Scarlet and Violet bother me more. From rough or absent textures and questionable models to empty areas that ruin any sense of immersion, Scarlet and Violet made a lot of mistakes. That’s not a new observation, but with the release of Palworld, it’s worth taking another (painful) look at what went wrong.

Palworld vs. Pokemon Graphics

Palworld‘s look is a compromise between realism and cartoonishness. Gaze at the vegetation or the texture of the stones you’re mining, and you’ll appreciate their detail. From the grass on the stone steps to the smooth transition from fog to skybox, Palworld sells itself as a living world, even without hyper-realistic graphics. Pals are, intentionally, exaggerated cartoons, just like Pokemon have always been. They might be useful, but they’re about as kawaii as characters come. Pengullet isn’t a penguin: it’s a child’s idea of a penguin. Pals are violently at odds with the semi-realism of the world around them, and that’s the point.

Aesthetically, the world of Scarlet and Violet shares a lot in common with the Pokemon that inhabit it. No, the buildings and benches don’t share the exaggerated cuteness of Pikachu and Snorlax, but there isn’t a hard disconnect between their art styles either. That works against the games because there’s no room to pass off graphical clashes as stylistic choices. They’re just mistakes. Missing textures is a mistake. Dropping frames is a mistake. Creating a world that looks okay as long as you never go into the overworld is a mistake. Pokemon remains king of the creature-collection genre, but now and then it still self-destructs like an angry Voltorb.

A New Generation of Cute

Pokemon isn’t going anywhere, but right now, there’s only one creature-collection game that doesn’t make me want to stare into the sun. Palworld is early access, and plenty of areas need polish or fleshing out, but in terms of graphics it’s just better than what Pikachu and company are delivering. It’s not just a matter of 4k snobbery: bad graphics can kill immersion, and that’s what happened with Scarlet and Violet, at least for me. It’s not the pistol-toting chipmunks that draw me to Palworld, it’s the feeling that those pistol-toting chipmunks have their own little world that I get to be a part of.

Palworld is available for PC in early access.