Pocket Pair’s action-adventure, survival, and monster-taming game, Palworld, is now available in early access on Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, and Xbox One X, and if you’re on the fence about which version to pick up, read ahead.
The game offers a single graphics mode across all consoles. In terms of visual settings, textures and shadows in the Xbox Series S version are identical to those found in the Xbox Series X version. However, there is a noticeable drop in draw distances for geometry and more pop-in for buildings on the former. Meanwhile, the texture resolution on Xbox One X is of much lower quality and a significant downgrade from Xbox Series S. Similarly, draw distance settings are lower for geometry, trees, and grass tufts all round. Lastly, the Xbox One S version further lowers the grass and geometry LODs, and has significantly pared back texture quality.
In terms of resolution, the Xbox Series X version of Palworld runs at a native resolution of 2880 x 1620 (1620p) while the Xbox Series S version runs at 1280 x 720 (720p). Meanwhile, the Xbox One X version of the game runs at a native resolution of 1920 X 1080 (1080p) while the Xbox One S version drops all the way down to 960 x 540 (540p).
With regards to performance, all console versions of Palworld target a frame rate of 60 fps, though none of them are able to achieve it. The Xbox Series X versions delivers a frame rate generally in the range of 40 to 50 fps while the Xbox Series S fares better with a frame rate often in the range of 40 to 60 fps. Meanwhile, the frame rate in the Xbox One X version can drag well into the 20s for prolonged spells, occasionally dropping as low as 17 fps. The Xbox One S version can drop even further down to 15 fps, and generally performs similar to the Xbox One X version. To make matters worse, both previous-gen versions also suffer from traversal/asset streaming and menu stutters.
All in all, it’s evident that Palworld is currently in early access, and will likely receive performance and visual improvements as it approaches its release. As of writing, the Xbox Series S version delivers the most stable performance, especially for those who are playing on a VRR capable display.
