"It's all going to change": Palworld devs aren't "force wiping anyone" for the survival game's big 1.0 update, but they "softly recommend you start from scratch"

PocketPair publishing lead John 'Bucky' Buckley says you won't need to make a new save file with the launch of Palworld 1.0, but you might have a better time if you do.

Palworld is now over two years old, originally launching into early access back in January 2024. Since then, the game has had a steady string of updates, plus new ports like a PS5 edition released toward the end of 2024 and a Mac version released in 2025, with a Switch 2 version "worth considering" even amid a lawsuit from The Pokemon Company. However, Palworld hasn't reached that elusive 1.0 just yet, but with a 2026 rollout in sight, the developers have shared more info about the big update.

Speaking to GamesRadar+ at GDC, Buckley says, "I think people will be shocked at what we've been able to achieve for 1.0."

He explains that "you can jump into 1.0 with your existing character if you want to. We're not force wiping anyone. You can jump in. But we are going to kind of softly recommend you start from scratch, because everything is going to change from the beginning to the end – it's all going to change."

However, it's not the end of the world if you don't want to reset your progress after the past two years. Buckley says, "a huge chunk of quote-unquote end game content will be added," noting, "if you really want to continue from where you left off, sure, you're not missing out on the full experience, but you are missing out on some things."

"We've tried our best to expand everything," he says of update 1.0. "Not just the end game, but also improve the early game, add more to the early game, flesh out the middle game, kind of something for everyone, really."

Palworld devs are "happy to hand the IP over" to the right studio for a spin-off but draw the line at "Palworld Balatro."