A fantasy life sim adventure, Palia has been able to garner more than 6 million players, and now, Singularity 6 is releasing its first expansion, with the Elderwood DLC. But that’s not all, Palia is also coming to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on May 13, 2025. Palia is a unique MMO. Focused on the cozy social elements, Palia was released in early access in 2024 and offered players a unique co-op opportunity when it came to cooking mechanics, farming, and on the personal note, romancing village NPCs.
While Palia has already been released on the Nintendo Switch, the cross-progression, cross-platform game is rounding out its platforms for a truly inclusive experience. We got the chance to go hands-on with the console version of the game, and to be honest, it’s a perfect pairing.
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The long awaited arrival on current-gen consoles will coincide with the release of a new expansion called Elderwood, adding vertical exploration and a spooky layer to Palia’s ever-evolving story. Elderwood adds a new area for players to explore, a dense and magical forested Adventure Zone filled with surprises. New creatures and resources are being added to the game.
The Elderwood DLC is expanding the game loop in a thoughtful way.
One of the most exciting elements for farmers is that the resource structure has been updated to make Paladium more plentiful, as well as adding new resources to the mix for expanding furniture items for the completionist crafters to make. In Palia, resource spawns and balance have been consistent areas in need of improvement.
When we spoke to the developers during our time with the game, they mentioned that they’ve been working to help balance the resources and spawns. With a new Adventure Zone and a new top-end resource, that allows players to rebalance their relationship with spawn rotations and keep expanding what can be crafted.
But the exciting element that comes with the Palia Elderwood DLC is the fact that the game’s new investment in vertical exploration has opened a world of exciting platforming. While the visual design of the witchy woods in deep purples and blues is exhilarating as you explore, the newly added creatures also change how you engage with the environment. One of the new creatures, the Shmole, will pop out of the ground, and to complete a hunt, you have to follow it as it hides and then pops up in another location. Singularity 6 has taken full advantage of its new verticity and platforming.
Additionally, the other new creature, called the Ogapuu, gives players their first interaction with a hostile creature. Of course, “hostile” in the Palia way. That said, the new mechanics that the two creatures introduce help the game expand its gameloop and add player interactions to keep existing players invested and open the door for older players to return.
Elderwood offers players fresh ways to explore and gather with friends, bringing in familiar characters like Nai’o and Subira to guide players on their new quests. This expands the way that Palians can interact with their favorite NPCs and new story elements to explore.
Palia’s Elderwood DLC also adds new collectibles to the world. Specifically, the new DLC will add Artifacts into the game. Artifacts unlock a brand new equipment type called Relics, which will unlock your true potential by providing you and your party with unique buffs. Elderwood also introduces new artifacts, fish, insects, plushes, and decor to transform players’ homes. This expansion of exploration continues to diversify how players can engage with the world and decorate their homesteads in the Elderwood DLC.
The beauty of the Elderwood DLC is purely Palia, but its aesthetic also embraces the witchier elements of the game with a cool color palette. While PC players have controller support already, my time with the Elderwood DLC was the first time I’d played the game with it. Menus and systems work perfectly in the controller format and with the cross-play and progression, the expansion into all current-gen gaming is sure to bring in a whole new audience.
Vertical exploration is an exciting new addition in Palia’s first expansion.
Palia players looking to jump back in with their friends on May 13 can look forward to the return of Palia’s “Refer A Friend” program. By inviting their friends to the game, Palians can earn the “Elderwood Fun Guy” Plush in five different sizes. And players who missed out on the original Refer A Friend rewards will have another opportunity to earn those goodies for a limited time.
The reality is though, that the Elderwood DLC is the perfect time to come back to the game if you bounced off it. Singularity 6 has done the most to expand the game in a meaningful way. The mystical Elderwood isn’t just a new Adventure Zone, but a thoughtful expansion of how to play the game.
Since its initial release, Palia has released more than 24 content updates to date. Palia’s monthly update cadence has launched more than 800 housing decor items, seasonal events and minigames, trading and building mechanics, tons of style options, and immersive storylines. And the Elderwood DLC is an exciting first look at expanding the world players can take part in.
Palia is also available on Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and GeForce Now and will arrive on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S May 13, 2025.
