Palia: The Cozy MMO
Palia is a new MMO that promises to cross Animal Crossing with World of Warcraft and the Sims. For those gamers that enjoy more of the relaxing aspects of gaming, fishing, cooking, and building/decorating your in-game homes this is definitely something you might consider diving into.
The game is being developed by Singularity 6, which includes some people that were formerly at Blizzard and Riot. The game looks beautiful with some Zelda Breath of the Wild feels. Naturally, I applied for the beta cause lately I’m all for anything described as “cozy.” I was immediately teased by my husband for writing an (atomic) essay for one of the questions. Haha The company has continued to grow and hire, even through the Pandemic.
I've been gaming since forever and have continued now that I'm just a big kid, when I find the time while juggling life, work, and my kids. I've been playing World of Warcraft forever. I switch between a Rogue and a Warlock as my main, though lately I've been slow rolling a Druid. Leveling and dailies can start feeling like a grind when I'm tired from RL anyway and my gaming drops off. I do sometimes jump on just for fishing, cooking, or picking flowers while ignoring all questing. Being that Palia seems to put more emphasis on baking is an interesting concept. I also play the Sims every once in a while, with all the cheats on and endless monies, so I can build a bunch of houses with massive closets and dressing rooms (because clearly my inner fashionista has her priorities in check on the largest lot in Brindleton Bay.) Naturally, I enthusiastically give my husband virtual tours of all my builds and every tour always seems to end with him asking me if I need all the rooms? Yes... yes, I do. I also play Animal Crossing though I've let my youngest take control and she has since nearly spent all of my Bells and loops me in whenever she needs me to grind for more Bells or weed the town. Thanks, kid.
Palia features a world where humans are a legendary race which starts to reappear. The studio says that there will be "robust" character creation options for skin tones, hairstyles, and even a fashion system. This makes me wonder if I'll end up blowing gold for silly things as I have in WoW. For example, that ring from Haris Pilton, which my banker needed (of course) to make her outfit baller. According to Singularity6, there will be over a thousand decor items available at launch and for some people being able to build and decorate your own house in a game is fun and purely addictive. It was exciting when World of Warcraft launched garrisons. Buying an apartment in Star Wars was a draw. It was always nice to have a spot to park your character that was their own and not a town Inn for resto xp. Palia is offering a very interesting concept that many people, including me, are definitely curious about. I'm looking forward to giving it a try once it launches or if I get ii on the Beta.