“Bonkers” – Pocketpair’s Head of Publishing Says Palworld Is Still Hitting 500,000 Concurrent Steam Players Midweek Despite “Dead Game” Claims

Despite recurring claims that Palworld has become a “dead game,” Pocketpair’s head of publishing and communications, John “Bucky” Buckley, says the survival hit is still drawing around 500,000 concurrent players on Steam during the middle of the week, weeks after its full 1.0 release.

His comments came in response to social media users focusing on the game’s lower player count compared to its record-breaking early access launch.

Pocketpair responds to “dead game” criticism

Buckley acknowledged that Palworld no longer matches the more than 2 million concurrent Steam players it reached during its explosive 2024 early access debut.

However, he argued that comparing current numbers to an all-time launch peak ignores how successful the game remains after expanding to additional platforms, including PlayStation 5, and surpassing 40 million total players before version 1.0 launched.

In a post shared on social media, Buckley wrote,

“Still hitting half a mil [concurrent users] midweek. Bonkers.”

He also joked about online critics, saying,

“There’s people out there absolutely dying to post ‘Palworld lost X% of their players! Dead game!!’ and at this rate they’ll have to wait at least another week or two…”

He later thanked the community, adding,

✉

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“Goofs aside, thanks again for making 1.0 such a success, gamers.” 

Palworld’s full release has already exceeded many expectations. Shortly after version 1.0 launched, the game climbed back toward one million concurrent Steam players, demonstrating that interest remains high more than two years after its original early access debut.

Buckley previously described the response as “life-changing” while thanking players for supporting the game through its journey to full release.

Although concurrent player counts naturally decline after launch, Palworld continues to rank among Steam’s most-played games. Buckley’s latest remarks reinforce Pocketpair’s position that long-term success should be measured by sustained engagement rather than comparisons to an unprecedented launch peak.