Palworld: The Most Brutal Game of 2024

In 2024, a game named "Palworld" sparked widespread controversy due to its extremely brutal gameplay setting. This game was accused of plagiarizing and stitching together elements from other games, but the primary contention revolves around its merciless treatment of creatures.

In the game, players are required to manage their Pals (creatures in the game) and ensure they maintain high work efficiency. When Pals fall ill and their productivity decreases, players often opt to replace them with healthy Pals. However, an incident occurred where a player accidentally took a sick Pal on an adventure, leading to its death in a battle with wild beasts. Surprisingly, upon reviving the Pal at home, the player discovered that its illness had completely vanished. This led to a gruesome practice: the player began slaughtering sick Pals and then reviving them, quickly returning them to their workstations.

As the number of Pals working in the base grew, the player realized that individually killing and reviving Pals was inefficient. Consequently, they built a crematorium in the base, throwing sick Pals into the fire for mass revival, thus achieving a brutal form of labor resource optimization. Some players even suggested placing beds near the crematorium, automating the entire process as Pals would seek out the beds when resting, leading to their automatic revival.

This behavior trivializes the lives of Pals, exhibiting a cruel attitude towards life and extreme methods of resource utilization in the game.

According to comments on Steam and social media platforms, many players expressed strong dissatisfaction with the game's brutal content. Players criticized the game's design philosophy, stating it displayed indifference and cruelty towards life, which was excessively portrayed in the game. Some players emphasized that although it is just a game, such cruelty could negatively impact the player's mindset.

While "Palworld" stirred controversy with its gameplay mechanics, some comments suggested it might be a metaphor for the modern work environment. The exploitation and squeezing of Pals in the game could reflect the real-life utilization and consumption of workers and resources. However, this metaphor does not fully justify the game's brutal content.