Palworld Dev Pocketpair Gives Employees Monster Hunter Wilds Launch Day Off After Receiving ‘Mysterious’ Notes From Staff Who Said They’d Probably Be Too Unwell to Work

Pocketpair, the studio behind Palworld, granted its employees a company-wide holiday to celebrate the launch of Monster Hunter Rise. This playful response to widespread employee enthusiasm, initially signaled by numerous "sick" calls, was reported by Automaton. While acknowledging the unusual absence, Pocketpair assured fans that game updates would remain unaffected.

Monster Hunter Rise's launch has been phenomenal, boasting over 1 million concurrent Steam players, catapulting it into Steam's top 10 most-played games ever, surpassing titles like Baldur's Gate 3, Hogwarts Legacy, and Elden Ring. Despite this success, the game currently holds a "Mixed" user review rating on Steam, prompting Capcom to release PC performance optimization guidance and announce details for Title Update 1, which will introduce an endgame social hub.

The game's impact is global, but particularly significant in Japan. One Japanese indie developer humorously lamented their lack of Steam sales since Monster Hunter Rise's release, highlighting the game's dominance. This isn't Pocketpair's first "game day" – a similar initiative occurred in 2022 for Elden Ring's release.

To aid players, various resources are available, including guides covering hidden game mechanics, weapon type breakdowns, a walkthrough, multiplayer instructions, and beta character transfer information. IGN awarded Monster Hunter Rise an 8/10, praising its refined combat but noting a lack of significant challenge.