I Can’t Wait To Explore the Elderwood in ‘Palia’, With PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series Releases Confirmed for the Same Day

Palia is one of the most accessible and enjoyable games that I’ve ever played. Its beautiful world can only be matched by its immaculate vibes. But it seems like those vibes may be shifting soon. Something a bit more… magical is coming around the corner, now that the Elderwood biome is soon to release. After getting a chance to attend a hands-off preview of the new location, I need to put the pedal to the metal on that story content so I can get into the Elderwood as soon as possible. At least I’ll be able to enjoy it on either a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series console on the same day.

May 13th Is Bound To Be a Very Exciting Day To Be a ‘Palia’ Fan, Especially if You’re Looking for New Areas To Explore

There’s so much exciting news that I don’t know where to start. Well, let’s go for the piece of news that I’m the most excited about. Palia is officially launching on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on May 13th, 2025. And, yes, just like the Switch and PC versions, players who have been on a different console can log in with their Palia account and bring over all of their progression to a new platform. I can’t wait to just sit on the couch and spend hours exploring Elderwood with my wife. Oh yeah, on top of the new consoles? Palia is getting a new biome for players to explore, called Elderwood.

The Elderwood is a much more magical place than the rest of Palia. While the typical lands of Palia were slightly more grounded in realism, the Elderwood is much more fanciful. Bouncy mushrooms, much more verticality, and a completely different vibe help set this land apart from the base game in a tremendous way. After watching the team at Singularity 6 explore an early version of the Elderwood, it’s convinced me to get my story progress up to snuff so I can explore it straight away.

The Elderwood Is Looking Quite Fantastic Already, and I Can’t Wait to Finally Jump In

According to a recent press release, now is the time to start trying to get your Palia group back up and running:

“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 Palia, 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.”

So, not only do we have the opportunity to play on new platforms, but we’ve got plenty of incentives to bring our friends back into the game. Sounds like a plan to me; sign me right up. Katie and I have recently hit the obsessive stage of collecting plushies in Palia. So, this could be the perfect time to recruit the Waypoint Crew to join us on our adventures.

Don’t Worry, There Are New Fish, Fauna, and Creatures To Hunt in the Elderwood

Many exciting new changes are coming to Palia with the Elderwood update, but I think the new creatures are some of my favorites. Getting into group hunts is always exciting. But now, some critters can fight back. Sort of, at least. Rather than giving players a typical health bar, creatures can apply debuffs during hunts. So, for example, if you get hit with slime, you’re going to be slowed down, making the hunt much more difficult. And for those who don’t want to hunt for meat to cook with? Some new mushroom options can replace standard red meat.

New “Artifacts” can also buff parties, making hunting, fishing, and gathering much faster and more exciting. There’s a lot of stuff to look forward to here. Rather than ruining all of the surprises? I’ll leave some of them uncovered until you have a chance to finally explore the Elderwood. Genuinely, this looks like some of the best content available to date in Palia. The new zone is gorgeous to see in motion. And the verticality of everything is exciting. I’m already beyond eager to dive in for myself.