Palworld 1.0 Crossplay Guide: How to Link Up with Your Friends
Trying to coordinate a multiplayer session during the early access phase was an absolute nightmare of outdated internet guides and strict platform restrictions.
Pocketpair spent the last several months overhauling the backend infrastructure, turning a clunky setup into a smooth multiplayer experience for the 1.0 launch. I loaded up a world on my PC to play with some friends who were hanging out on an Xbox and a Steam Deck, and everything ran incredibly well outside of a rare hiccup. You don't have to grill your friends about which storefront they used to buy the game anymore. I mapped out exactly how cross-platform connectivity functions in the launch version so you aren't wasting time in the menus.
Full Platform Compatibility in Version 1.0
The baseline feature set is straightforward now that the network is unified. Crossplay officially took root back in the v0.5.0 update, but the launch patch stabilizes the netcode so everyone can coexist without constant disconnects.
Here is exactly who can share a single world in the current build:
PC: Steam, Xbox Game Pass for PC, and WinGDK clients.
Console: Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PlayStation 5.
Desktop: Mac native clients, complete with Discord integration support.
This open compatibility means your hardware choices don't lock you out of a specific friend group.
How to Enable Crossplay as a Host
You don't need every single person in your group to change their system settings to make this work. The burden falls entirely on the person hosting the world, which makes troubleshooting a lot easier if someone can't connect.
Step-by-Step Host Setup
Follow these exact steps from the main menu to get your server running.
Select the specific saved world file you intend to play from your list.
Open the World Settings menu attached to that specific save.
Locate the Cross-Play option and toggle it to the on position.
Launch the world normally.
Once your character spawns into the environment, open your Pause menu. You'll see a unique world invite code generated on the screen. Copy that string of characters and send it directly to anyone you want to invite to your session. Keeping the network settings tied to the host means your guests just have to paste a code and play. If you ever want to lock down your game for a solo session, just head back to the World Settings menu before launching and flip the toggle off.
How to Join a Crossplay Session
Joining a friend's hosted world is even simpler than setting one up. The incoming connection doesn't require any internal menu tweaks at all.
Entering a Hosted Co-Op World
From the title screen, click on the Join Multiplayer Game option designed for invite codes. Paste the exact code your host sent you into the text field and confirm. The game takes a few seconds to process the handshake, and then it drops you right into the server regardless of your native hardware.
Connecting to Dedicated Servers
If you want to join a large-scale dedicated server instead of a private co-op world, the workflow shifts slightly. Dedicated servers have crossplay active by default, so you don't need to fish for a manual invite code.
Click on Join Multiplayer Game from the title screen and browse the populated server list displayed on your monitor. If a specific server isn't showing up for your friends on different platforms, you'll need to reach out to the server administrators. They have to verify that their crossplay configuration is properly updated for the 1.0 build, otherwise the server remains invisible to external hardware.
Multiplayer Limitations and Voice Chat Quirks
While the crossplay features are robust now, you'll still run into a few structural differences depending on how you choose to play. There's a distinct difference in the overall world experience when comparing a small hosted multiplayer session to a massive dedicated server. Latency and lag are still tied directly to the quality of the host's internet connection. Pick the person with the best bandwidth to run the save file, or your combat dodges simply won't register during a boss fight.
The WinGDK Audio Gate
Don't waste an hour trying to debug your microphone settings in the options menu. Take note of an important platform limitation regarding the brand-new built-in voice chat feature. It only functions if it's explicitly enabled in the world settings of a dedicated server.
Furthermore, the feature is completely unsupported on WinGDK clients. If you or your friends are relying on that specific PC framework, you'll need to use an external communication program like Discord to chat during your hunts.
