❓│old-team-answers-alpha

[dire badger]

Hello @everyone, you patient Palians! Here at , we are in the height of summer, so here’s that sizzling round of Ask the Team ready for you, hot off the press! 🍳

This time, we have nine questions and their answers from our Sixers, featuring…

- EinarHugBestHug (Lead Meta Systems Designer)
- BuscoBear (Lead User Experience Designer)
- knotar (Audio Director)
- Bourbon (Senior Designer)
- Asherelle (Community Manager)```

Is this your first time joining us? No problem!

> 1. Head on over to [#851872239435644928](/guild/809856101326913567/channel/851872239435644928/), and feel free to ask away any burning questions you have relating to Palia. 🔥
> 2. Scroll through and upvote any other questions you'd like to see answered. 📜
> 3. We'll close the channel for the next round and sort by the most upvotes.📈

**Disclaimers:**

• Not all questions, even if highly upvoted, will be answered. This is likely due to it already being an answered question in the past, or perhaps a topic we're not ready to cover just yet.
• Also, please note some questions have had words, spelling, or phrases edited from the original submission for better readability.
Thanks for understanding!

Submissions for the next round will be accepted until
⏰`August 1st  at 3:00 PM PT` ⏰ 
Responses will be posted by the last week of August~

Read below for the latest Q&A!

1️⃣ From @chilly osprey

As far as housing goes, what level of cooperation and teamwork will be possible between players? Can two people share a house and have full access to decoration? More than two people? Will there be communal housing for, say, guilds?

Eris:
First off, thanks so much for the question! At the moment, you CAN be a good neighbor and help water your friends’ crops just in case they missed it, and you can cook together in an attempt to make that perfect, high quality dish (and hopefully not ruin it)! But for any additional cooperation, that’s something that we definitely want players to have a level of access to, this being a game about community and building a society together…buuuut we’re not ready to have that feature tested with the community just yet. 🤞

2️⃣From @north lance

With the concept of Neighborhoods being very similar to most MMOs version of Guilds, what can you tell us that makes your neighborhood special? Will we be working towards anything as a group? Will we be able to decorate together or will there be benefits to doing things in game together? What is the purpose of having one?

EinarHugBestHug:
Hi Lady Brittany! Neighborhoods are different from Guilds because they’re intended to have a wider variety of shared activities. They’re also expected to be generally smaller than what people expect from MMO Guilds so we can emulate the “cozy” feel of a tight-knit group.

So, before I proceed, let me explain the difference between synchronous and asynchronous activities. The former are actual events that you’re expected to be present and do together, such as chopping trees or mining ores. The latter are activities where the goal is still mutual, but anyone can contribute at their own convenience, such as a check-in event with completion milestones.

Neighborhoods will be where most asynchronous cooperative activities take place and in the future, and we have lots of ideas and plans of what direction we want to go in—though it might be a bit early to say in detail for now. Ultimately, the goal is to have Neighborhoods be a way to represent yourself, your group, and the progress you’ve made together in Palia.

3️⃣From @weak musk

There was a point about resources being shared between all chests. This is great!
But as someone who loves getting their things tidy even when it comes to an inventory in a game: will it be possible to sort items by type, search for specific ones in the chests (or player bags for that matter)? And the final part: will it be possible to manually sort items in chests using custom folders?

The reasoning behind that is that normal filters/tags have to be relatively unspecific (imho) if you don't want to attack the player with a list of 300 item tags, where letting anyone sort their stuff just as they want it would mean that anyone could have their tags be just as accurate as they want.

BuscoBear:
Searching and sorting through your inventory is a really important part of any gathering/crafting game. The experience for our next Alpha playtest will likely be unchanged, but we have made some exciting steps under the hood that will unlock the full potential of inventory very soon.

When work on our inventory and storage system is complete, you will be able to sort by a ton of different gameplay tags, search for the exact item you need, and workstations will remember what you were working on, saving your filters how you want them.

4️⃣From @tough ocean & @copper urchin

Will the villagers be fully voice animated in the future? Will our characters be voiced or not?

knotar:
As of writing, each villager has anywhere between 40 - 60 voice lines, depending if they are romanceable. These lines are played during the intros and outros of your dialogue with the characters. They’ll change as you level up your relationship with the character, and we have different tiers of voice lines for both Friendship and Romance tracks.

Additionally, there are some sound effects tied to character animations, such as sighing, or being surprised. If our voice lines are well-received, we could even expand them to factor in more context, such as weather, time of day, etc. There’s a lot we can do!

As for player characters, the plan is to have a total of 10 voice options you can choose from, and they’ll be based off timbre.

5️⃣From @leaden monolith

I saw that there are 8 professions/skills. Will we be able to learn each of these or will it be limited to 1 or 2?

Bourbon:
Yes, you’ll be able to learn all of the eight skills from the get-go. There will be quests to introduce you to each one, but it'll be up to you to decide which skills to focus on. Whether it’s becoming a professional pie-baker, or discovering all the insects of Palia, we want to support a fun experience no matter which skill (or how many) you take on.

Asherelle:
Let me know which skills you’d be interested in the most in the chat! Maybe we should start a poll.

6️⃣From @vague oasis

Will there be chromatic changes/options to change the colors of clothing/armor/equipment?
If so, will it be RGB choices? Or extremely limited by a set of colors?

EinarHugBestHug:
Our current system has you choosing pre-existing color palettes—we call them variants—so for each outfit piece you’ll have a number of options to choose from right at the get-go. This will likely be the system we have in place for the game’s launch, though a lot of consideration is being done to make sure we’re catering to the kind of themes, colors and patterns our community wants to see.

**Asherelle: **
As an example, here are some of the different variants we have for our previously revealed Chappa Onesie Outfit! ✨⚡

7️⃣From @patent oriole

According to previous posts...humans are returning to the world for the first time in centuries. So that begs the question...what year is it? Does the time of our return have any bearing on the plot?

vega:
What you know when entering Palia for the first time is that some pretty major events happened a good thousand years plus in the history of the world, and that is the last time anyone saw hide or hair of a human. Part of the story will be delving into those secrets and finding out what happened in the past to cause humanity’s disappearance, in order to understand current events and find solutions for the future. You’ll see ruins dotted about the landscape with lore attached for you to discover, and meet characters that may offer better insight into humanity’s history. As for the future, and the timing of your return… Well, that is its own mystery you’ll have to unravel. It certainly seems like things are happening for a reason, but what that reason might be remains to be seen.

**8️⃣From @glass widget **

#❓│old-team-answers-pre-alpha mentions intro quests to get basic tools and learn the game, via #❓│old-team-answers-alpha we know that the villagers will have friendship building quest chains and some of them will continue on with romance building quest chains.
The world as a whole will have a narrative which I assume will include a set of quest chains to tell the story of Palia and the humans disappearance and reappearance.
We know there are 'many bars to fill' doing activities and/or using skills.

Do these activities and/skills get a set of quests that people can do ?
And if so, will they be random and varied enough to feel less repeatable and grindy and more a part of the story or a part of the NPCs story lines, if the NPCs in question are linked to an activity/skill.

vega:
One of the goals of the quest system is to introduce concepts to players within the context of the story and lore as a whole—instead of just having a popup explaining how to fish, you also get to talk to Einar and learn from him what he thinks about fishing in Palia! We have introduction quests for each skill that are designed to explain their meaning, and interactions with each of the NPCs who “leads” that skill planned for the future. Right now, we have…

- Auni as your bug buddy
- Hassian as your hunting handler
- Tish as your furniture making friend
- Reth as your cooking companion
- Hodari as your mining mentor
- Badruu as your gardening guru
- …and Ashura as your foraging friend!```

Phew, that’s roll call! And yes, I did use “friend” three times. My thesaurus failed me.

Anyway! As of right now, a vast majority of quests actually aren’t repeatable. Narrative quests are handcrafted and unique, and any repeatable content should have enough variety and fun to them so it doesn’t end up too much as a mindless grind or chore to do.

When it comes to skills, the goal is that for players who are also interested in quests and NPC interaction, there will be content available for you to engage with, but that it won’t be a requirement to be besties with Badruu if you just want to garden on your own. (Though he certainly wants to be your friend!)

As for other quests already in the game, including friendship and romance: using your skills is often a major way for you to progress certain goals and storylines. We like to offer multiple different ways for certain quests to be completed, depending on how you like to play the game. Whether it’s charming your way to success or befriending someone with a cake you just baked, we want to be able to integrate other game mechanics to enrich your quest experience and interaction with the NPCs. 🍰

**9️⃣From @main swallow **

What are the main principles Singularity 6 looks for in someone that aspires to join them?
relating to this, what is Singularity 6's policy regarding hiring people with no experience in the Videogame Industry?

Asherelle:
Hey Arco! It’s great that you ask because we’ve recently updated our company website! Our “About” page really highlights the characteristics and values we’re looking for in the kind of people we want to hire.
While it’s not necessary to have worked in the industry to apply, being able to pivot existing experience to match what the position is looking for will go a long way. Here at S6, we’re looking to find the best candidates to help us make Palia the best game it can be.😊

About Page: https://www.singularity6.com/about
Current Job Openings: https://www.singularity6.com/careers

That wraps up this round of Ask the Team!

As a reminder, submissions for the next round will be accepted in #851872239435644928 until
⏰ August 1st at 3:00 PM PT ⏰
You can expect responses by the first week of September!

If you have any comments or feedback, I’ll be sticking around #💬│palia-discussions for a bit.
See you there! 💨

[dire badger]

Hello! For those wondering where the next round of Ask the Team is, fret not! We have something ✨super exciting✨ in the works, but it's going to take us more time than expected to share to all you lovely Palians~!

Please stay tuned and expect Ask the Team to be out by the end of this week! Thanks for being so awesome and patient.

[dire badger]

Hello @everyone! We’re back! We’ve been busy running and wrapping up our Alpha 2 Test, but Ask the Team MUST GO ON~! 🪄

This time, we tried to focus on sharing a bit more of the world of Palia for those still patiently waiting! We’ve got ten questions and answers from fellow Sixers, including…

- Eris (Senior Producer)
- Bourbon (Senior Designer)
- ziE (Senior Publishing Director)
- Gutterfoot (Senior Game Designer)
- vega (Narrative Designer)
- Jeremy Fenske (Art Director)
- Asherelle (Community Manager)```

Is this your first time joining us? No problem!

> 1. Head on over to [#851872239435644928](/guild/809856101326913567/channel/851872239435644928/), and feel free to ask away any burning questions you have relating to Palia. 🔥
> 2. Scroll through and upvote any other questions you'd like to see answered. 📜
> 3. We'll close the channel for the next round and sort by the most upvotes.📈

**Disclaimers:**

Not all questions, even if highly upvoted, will be answered. This is likely due to it already being an answered question in the past, or perhaps a topic we're not ready to cover just yet.

Also, please note some questions have had words, spelling, or phrases edited from the original submission for better readability.

Thanks for understanding!

Submissions for the next round will be accepted until
⏰ <t:1663192800:f> ⏰ 
*This time is local to you!

Curious about all our past Ask the Team Responses?
You can find our archive here: <https://singularity6.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/sections/7474069473684>

Read below for the latest Q&A!

1️⃣ From @rapid mango

I know Palia is structured as a social sim first, but any game needs progression for players to feel engaged with a game. When it comes to player progression, how does Palia intend to keep players playing and keep coming back? Will base progression systems be expanded as the game grows or are they built from the ground up to be endless (a la black desert/runescape super grindy/limitless level caps)? What evergreen content is in place to make sure there are meaningful ways to progress even for players who have played a very long time?

**Aidan: **Hi Skunk,

This is definitely a valid question that calls on us to evaluate what our long-term plans are for Palia.

Many of our game’s features, including skills, have been designed to be expanded over the game’s lifespan through patches and content updates well beyond launch. Whether you’re a new player just starting out or a long-timer with many hours, we want our patches to provide a wide variety of content that appeals to a number of different playstyles and preferences. This can include, for example, a new furniture set that has the missing piece you need to finish out your tavern-themed game room, or a series of quests that finally gives you a satisfying conclusion to your favorite villager’s coming-of-age arc. Larger updates will contain exciting things like entirely new maps to explore or even new skills added for you to dive into.

To expand more on our some of our plans for Palia, we brought in Sixers Eris and Bourbon to comment on home décor and skills:

Home Decoration
**Eris: **Think of your home as your base. No matter what adventures you set off on as you explore the world, you’ll always have a space to welcome you back. We really wanted to capture the pride that comes from slowly building out a space that you can call your own. Thus, the ability to decorate and customize your home will be core to your experience in Palia. We hope to provide lots of indoor furniture options, outdoor decor pieces, and many other ways for you to find what fits in the home of your dreams.

Skills
**Bourbon: **Skills are a core part of Palia’s gameplay loop. We made the decision for skills to have, as you mentioned, “limitless level caps” with the intention of expanding each track out over time. As you progress in a skill, you gain medals that you can use to claim rare materials, or exchange them for unlockables that are meant to be an indication of your effort. For example, if you have a koi pond in your garden, it’s a sign you’ve invested your effort into the Foraging skill. You can also choose to exchange your medals for other rewards, recipes, and exclusive items. This way, we’re rewarding players for their time in progressing these skills, but providing different reward systems for their type of play.

Aidan: In the future, we’re aiming to develop more community activities such as shared communal spaces, social gathering events, and sandbox-type gameplay. We’re still in the early stages of design for these, but we believe this is one of the most fun ways to get players to keep coming back.

2️⃣ From @signal lantern and @obtuse cape

Is there a roadmap for what the timeline is looking like for alpha/beta/release dates?

Is there a release date yet?

**ziE: **We’re aware this has been a frequent question and something that’s on the minds of many! To give a short answer: no, we don’t have a release date yet—but allow us to share a bit more on why.

Here’s the long answer: rather than having a set schedule with fixed dates or even quarterly milestones, we’re taking a different approach here at S6, at least, for the stage of where Palia is at right now. The Alpha tests help us gauge where we are, so we can make better decisions after each test to see how we move forward. Without a promised deadline, it allows us to make the best game we can.

Of course, it’s only fair we still provide some updates for our community, so this is what you can expect:

Most of our updates have been heavily on Discord, which is sometimes not the best way to share info. We know not everyone uses or likes to use Discord. We plan to show more about Palia on our official website blog, making it easier to read and share for the wider community. This includes updates on what we're working on such as before & afters, concept art, and other highlights on the game's progress. Stay tuned! 🤞

We’re also still evaluating how our next test will be run. As of writing, we’ve just wrapped up our second Alpha test, and are still sorting lots of crucial feedback and data received from that. This will help us evaluate what the next step will be, and sometimes it might mean “Yeah, let’s get ready for the next test!” or “Oh, we should really take our time and hunker down.” I’m sure you can understand how there’s lots to factor when it comes to making a game like Palia, which is why we’re hesitant to really give a concrete date even for when or how our next test will be.

That being said, there will eventually be a time when Palia will no longer be under NDA, and it’ll likely be prior to launch. We know you’re eager to see more of the game, and can’t wait for the day when the floodgates open and all sorts of comments, screenshots, and videos come out. That’s still on the horizon, and you’ll definitely know when it happens!

Finally, we want to confirm that we are not releasing Palia this year. We’re still heavy in development, and will update more as we progress further. While it’s not the exact answer we know people are looking for, this gives a better perspective of where we’re at. And as always, to everyone still eagerly looking forward to Palia and waiting for as long as it takes, thank you.

3️⃣ From El Circo#6675

Will there be customization beyond the house? (Garden, Backyard, Etc)

**Gutterfoot: **Yes, we have lots in store planned for outdoor housing customization for Palia! You’ll be able to have fencing and walkways with all sorts of customization options available, including different styles and sizes to choose from. Another thing I am personally looking forward to is adding in flowers and other types of decorative plants. Right now we have gardening, and these are all harvestable crops. I know people want some flowers and other flora to freshen up their home plots, and we’re working on that! We’ve got lots of fun things in store.

4️⃣ From @shell meteor

It may be asked before because romancing characters certainly is one of the juicy features in decent simulation games like My Time at Sandrock, The Sims series and so on.

But, I still have to ask given Palia's MMO situation. **In a multiplayers' setting, if several players want to romance the same NPC in a village, how is it determined who will succeed in being a boyfriend or girlfriend to the NPC? **Would it be like a competition between players or all players get the chance to be bf/gf to the same NPC (this could be somewhat weird to some people)?

P.S. I totally understand there are other types of relationships like "best friends" etc. If this was answered before, a link or a hint would be much appreciated! Thanks!

**vega: **This is a great question, and one we’ve thought about quite a bit. While most of the story and activities in Palia are meant to be experienced cooperatively, when it comes to romance we think consent and comfort is key. For this reason, players will not be competing with each other to date certain characters, and those NPCs will never mention dating another player to you. As all romance quest lines are single player, we simply treat you like you are the sole protagonist in those quest lines and conversations. This is the same for friendship quest lines as well, so that you can experience those stories at your own pace and develop your relationships with these NPCs naturally. As for different types of relationships, we are very interested in exploring more of those in the future!

5️⃣ From @tawny stag

Can we get some small footage or videos for those unlucky ones who could not get access to the alpha?

**Ashe: **We wanted to go the extra mile to answer this, so here is an very special video we've made for fans like you!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bClaH69dkg8

6️⃣ From @twin harness

Not sure if it’s been asked, but is there any plan to add aquariums and terrariums to show off all the fish and critters we can catch?

Eris: Psst, a version of this is already in the game!

**Ashe: **Here’s a sneak peak using screenshots from Tester @random blade! Please note screenshots taken from current tests are works-in-progress, and may appear different at launch~

**7️⃣ From @wet kettle **

Is the language you show in some of the artwork a constructed language, a script for English or just scribbles?

**Jeremy: **That language is an English alphabet cipher. All of the signage is directly translated to the English language and intentionally written, and I’m sure now the cat is out of the bag, it’ll be cracked in no time. The style of writing was designed by one of our concept artists and blends perfectly with the Majiri aesthetic. We also have an ancient script, though more on that will be revealed later.

**Ashe: **As a little tease, here are some signs from #🌠│official-art we’ve already shared in the past!

8️⃣ From @main swallow

Can you reveal any symbol, sigil, crest of arms of a royal family, logo, or anything in those lines from the world of Palia?

**Jeremy: **I don't have anything to reveal right now, but the visuals of family crests and iconography does play a role in Palia. For the more careful observers, you might be able to see family crests on some of the Villagers' clothes. Runes and symbols are an important part of Ancient culture, you may find runes and icons that foreshadow events or tell a story about that world. I’m excited to see the community uncover these mysteries as we slowly build out the world.

9️⃣ From @stable pollen

Could you tell us a bit more about the villagers? Like, what can you find each of them doing on a daily basis? What are some of their special quirks? And do THEY have different outfits, different house styles, etc?

vega: We have a vast cast of characters for you to meet and befriend in Palia. From our resident bad-boy chef Reth, to the mysterious pebble-loving Einar, to the eccentric and always curious Elouisa, there are plenty of stories for you to experience. Each NPC has their own unique set of questlines. For example, you might want to figure out what the deal is with that mysterious alchemist hiding out in Bahari Bay and find yourself tangled up in her web, or befriend the tailor Jel and help him discover new inspiration for his next clothing line. Some questlines are personal, while others might help you understand more of the world and lore around you. Do you want to help Jina form her new thesis for the academy, or help Kenyatta find her true calling in life (which the Majiri call the “Path”)? Why not both! Even the ever-judgmental magistrate Eshe can be befriended with enough time and effort (and appropriate deference).

Some NPCs are even romanceable, with romance-focused content and questlines available—which is optional, of course (as we answered in a past Ask the Team response).

Each NPC also has a schedule, from work to home to hobbies in between, that you can learn. You might spot our archaeologist examining ancient ruins, or the innkeeper out fishing during his lunch break, or any other number of things! Everyone also has a personal space decorated just for them that you can visit. We can’t wait for you to meet them all, and unravel just a little more of their story every time you interact!

1️⃣0️⃣From @dull brook

Are there certain non-traditional MMO UI or mechanic choices you’d like to share?

**Aidan: **Hi Vexy,

One example of how Palia is not a traditional MMO is how fleshed out all our NPCs will be. When you meet Ashura, he’s not just another “tutorial NPC.” He’s the owner of the Ormuu’s Horn Inn who has a full background and things he likes and dislikes—all available for you to learn as you get to know Ashura more. This extends to many of the characters you’ll meet in the world of Palia. And since we’re also a blend of the community sim genre, some of those villagers will also be romanceable. They also have schedules, meaning they have places to be and will move between destinations throughout the day.

Another distinction Palia has is that our world is designed to be an adventurous experience. You can look around with a third-person camera, climb your way up hills, and jump off cliffs to glide off into the distance. While Palia might not have as many maps as one would expect in an MMO at launch, we are putting effort into making sure they are all full of charming details and content for you to discover.

Finally, the subject of skills has been mentioned before, but I’d like to think that Palia’s skills are different from what people expect coming from MMOs. In Palia, our skills are “mining” and “cooking” instead of “firebolt” or “critical shot.” They are also all unlocked from the start of the game. Each skill has its own experience level and there are rewards and milestones associated with each one as you progress.

While there are many more cases, I think I’ll stop myself from getting too far ahead. Hope that answers your question!

That wraps up this round of Ask the Team!

Again, you can find an archive of all our past answers here:
https://singularity6.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/sections/7474069473684

As a reminder, submissions for the next round will be accepted in #851872239435644928 until
⏰ <t:1663192800:f> ⏰
*This time is local to you!

If you have any comments or feedback, I’ll be sticking around #💬│palia-discussions for a bit.
See you there!

[dire badger]

Hello @everyone! We return with the next batch of Ask the Team, just in time for the spooky season! 🎃

We’ve got five questions and answers from fellow Sixers, including…

- EmbrasAshes (Lead Narrative Designer)
- Jeremy Fenske (Art Director)
- Eris (Senior Producer)
- Aidan (Game Director)
- Asherelle (Community Manager)```

**Plus a special BONUS round of Q&A at the end! 💝**

**Disclaimers:**

> Not all questions, even if highly upvoted, will be answered. This is likely due to it already being an answered question in the past, or perhaps a topic we're not ready to cover just yet.

> Also, please note some questions have had words, spelling, or phrases edited from the original submission for better readability.

Thanks for understanding!

**Curious about all our past Ask the Team Responses?**
You can find our archive here:
<https://singularity6.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/sections/7474069473684>

🔽 Read below for the latest Q&A! 🔽

1️⃣ From @frozen pond

Question! I have a disgustingly intense passion for food! Can you go a little more in-depth on how the cooking system will work in-game? Will we be able to experiment in order to discover dishes a-la-GW2? Will there be ingredients we can forage around high and low to find? I'M SO EXCITED ABOUT FOOD im sorry

**Bourbon: **In designing the Cooking skill, we wanted it to be very interactive. As a first step, you need to first unlock the recipe. Some are given from the start, and some are learned as you progress in the skill more or discover them out in the world. Then, whether it’s found through Foraging or grown with Gardening, you’ll need to gather all the ingredients needed. The actual cooking itself involves a variety of mini-games depending on what you’re cooking, and it can even be done with friends! The hectic-but-fun experience of trying to create an awesome meal (together) is something we wanted to capture.

**Ashe: **As a reward for your efforts, using high-quality ingredients and cooking the recipe perfectly will even allow you to place the dishes as decor in your home. Show off your mad chef skills to everyone who visits! 😎 (Thanks to Tester Shyloh for the screenshot!)

2️⃣ From @frail wolf

As far as hunting/fishing/bug catching goes, will we receive crafting ingredients or trophies that we can display in our houses? And are there going to be enough creatures/fish/bugs with varying levels of rarity to keep those activities interesting for a long time?

**Bourbon: **Yes, we want players to be rewarded and have a way to showcase their progression. This includes having unlockables such as decor pieces tied to skills.

In addition to the various creatures and critters we’ll have for launch, there are definitely plans to add more over time.

3️⃣ From @Vindicta sum#4669

If we complete an NPC’s questline that we end up loving, will future updates expand or include them again? I ask this because in other games, when I finish the story of an NPC, they just disappear off the map or I never see that NPC again, and I feel pretty sad about that. :(

**EmbrasAshes: **Don’t worry! The villagers of Palia will continue to appear throughout the world even beyond quests. You’ll still be able to converse with them, interact with them, and even visit their homes. While there will be a set amount of quests at launch, we do plan to add additional friendship and romance content to the existing villagers, as well as more quests in general that are sure to involve your favorite ones.

**4️⃣ From @glass widget **

Could you tell us more about the effort put into crafting the Majiri language? Was it a part of world-building from the start?

**Jeremy: **I thought it was important that the Majiri have their own culture and that it’s not directly referencing an existing culture. It should feel unique and pair with Majiri culture in a nice and aesthetic way. I knew we needed the player to see posters and signs in the world but I wanted to avoid using English as a language. So, I asked Yangtian Li, our lead concept artist, to take a shot at creating a written language that is a cipher for the English alphabet. The written characters needed to match the existing cultural patterns seen in the world and looks as though it derived from a pictorial language. The result she came up with has become our Majiri language in Palia!

**Ashe: **We’ve shared some concept work from Yangtian on Twitter and Discord before! You can check out her Twitter here:https://twitter.com/yangtianli

5️⃣ From @fringe sail

For those of us who are "interior design challenged" will there be starter templates that we'll be able to build our houses from? If I have to start from scratch I'm afraid I'll end up with something that looks like a 'before' picture from r/malelivingspace 😅…

Eris: Okay, first of all, I feel so seen by this question because this is DEFINITELY ME when playing other games. One of my favorite parts of our housing system is how we go about giving players the tools to interact and set up a nice and attractive place of their own.

When you start building out your home, it begins as an empty space just waiting to be filled. As you progress in your Furniture Making skill, you’ll unlock recipes for more decor pieces to choose from. They are categorized in themed sets, so it’s entirely possible to have your whole home be the Log Cabin set, for example. Or you could mix and match from a number of themes as you unlock more options.

While the rooms won’t come with “templates”, we’ll have different room sizes and add-ons that will allow players to build some pretty nice-looking homes. Perhaps you can find inspiration from visiting a villager’s home or that of your friends and others in game as well! We really want to encourage players to share their creations and have others be inspired by that.

Aidan: To add to this, we wanted the housing customization in Palia to be accessible and easy for anyone wanting to decorate their home—and have it look good. But there are also some advanced options for those wanting a bit more control and expression. We think the system we have in place is a good balance that will appeal to many players, and can’t wait for more people to check it out.

Ashe: If you want to see screenshots of rooms (and other adventures) from our Testers, check out our blogs recapping Alpha 1 and Alpha 2!

Alpha 1: https://palia.com/news/adventures-in-alpha-exploring-every-corner
Alpha 2: https://palia.com/news/a-closer-look-at-alpha-2

Ask the Team - Bonus S6 Summit Q&A!

Lo and behold—a bonus round of Q&A we’re including here! 💖

While putting together this Ask the Team, we held a company summit in-person! You can read more about it here on our Singularity 6 website.
Link: https://www.singularity6.com/news/s6-2022-summit

As a part of this event, we had a chat with three very talented Sixers. Read on to hear about their roles, their time in the game industry, and what they're excited about for Palia!

Hi, everyone! Can you all introduce yourselves real quick? What is your name, role, and how long have you been at S6?

Jeremy: I’m Jeremy Fenske, the art director for Palia. I’ve been with S6 as the first employee, actually!

**Mary: **Hi, everyone! I’m Mary Schuyler, Senior Producer for the Meta team here at S6. I’ve been with the company for exactly a year, one month, and one day as of today!

Ambrielle: I’m Ambrielle Army, Senior Director of Production for Cosmetics. I’ve only been here for about a week, but it’s been a great experience already. I’m lucky to have this summit be part of my experience so early on!

Can you share with us what drew you to join S6?

J: At the time, I believe there was a mutual friend that recommended me to check out the company and I was able to speak to Aidan. They were looking for an artist to join, and it was at the very start of the company. I liked the pitch, and it was at the right time because I was really getting into cozy games and the vision of the art became very clear to me, like the “stars aligned”. Coming from my long tenure at AAA games like Destiny and working for Bethesda, it felt like a good change of pace for me.

M: I was reached out to by our recruitment team! As a part of their outreach, a link to the trailer was included, and I remember watching it and really loving the aesthetics. I've always been a life-long MMO player, and Palia felt like the kind of game I could play together with friends and family. I feel happy to be working on a game many people can enjoy.

A: What drew me was learning about Palia and really believing that it's the kind of game that would bring people together. My family is spread across the country and games have been a way for us to stay connected, but cozy games don’t really support playing together. I wanted to be a part of helping bring that to players.

Jeremy, can you share your experience of what S6 was like back then compared to how it is now?

**J: **I think getting [the first set of] Series A funding was definitely a big milestone for us, it meant we can actually make a game and deliver a final product! Another big milestone was in June 2021, when we dropped the trailer alongside our website and revealed the name of our game, Palia! Having the trailer like this out in the world made a huge difference for us on recruiting talent, but the fact that it went viral in the gaming community was really validating. It was great to see all the positive reactions online and was a huge morale boost for the team.

Mary, what about S6 do you enjoy?

M: Well, in my years in the industry as a producer, something I’ve found myself doing often was having to fight and convince others to get anything to come to fruition. At S6, though, it feels much more natural. The decisions make sense, and people tend to be agreeable and transparent in explaining their choices. I think it’s a quality that lets us get a lot of stuff done.

Ambrielle, how are you adjusting to S6 and our tools? Are you getting used to JIRA?

A: Haha. Okay, so, I’ve come to learn that JIRA is vastly different from organization to organization, but I’ve been really enjoying the setup at S6. So still trying out new things!

How did you get into the games industry?

J: Back when I was in high school, I learned that you could actually get paid for drawing stuff for games and decided, “yeah, that’s what I’m going to do.” I ended up going to an Art School and at the time we didn’t really have a digital arts or entertainment major, so pursued Fine Arts instead. As I was completing my thesis, I also put together a concept art portfolio, and applied to over sixty different places. I even sent out mailers to get more eyes on my reel. Eventually, I heard back from Zenimax/Bethesda for the Elder Scrolls Online team, and that was my first job in the industry.

**M: **In college, I read this book called What Color Is Your Parachute? and it told me that I should be a project manager for an entertainment company. Yeah! I knew that I played a lot of games but didn’t realize you could have a job in one. One day, I ended up attending a party full of people in the industry, and I remember thinking, “these are my people!” I started off working at Disney Interactive as QA. I was in the process of being trained up to become a producer, and long-story-short, I fell into the responsibilities of one and learned my way up!

A: Back in the early days of eSports, what I did was called “working for hoodies”, which was basically working for free with a game company and being sent freebies like hoodies as a show of appreciation. I would do event coverage, interviews, and all that stuff that eventually landed me a job at Riot doing the same thing, but actually getting paid for it! Then one day I was told, “You’re going to be a producer” and I was like “Okay!” and I’ve been doing it ever since.

As a player, what about Palia are you most excited about?

**M: **I’m a sucker for cosmetics! I feel like the team has been doing a great job. My personal favorite is the Explorer Outfit because that’s totally me.

**A: **Yes, the cosmetics are great! To give a unique answer, though, I really like the fishing in our game. The mini game is really fun and it feels like something I could do for hours.

**J: **Not to be biased because it is my team, but I really am looking forward to the world of Palia and what’s in store. I can’t wait to see the new adventure zones come to life and see how people react as they experience and explore more of the world of Palia.

What is one key takeaway from the Summit you’d like to share with everyone?

J: Um, wow! There’s so many people here! It’s great to really be able to interact in person, it’s like a dream come true. Really, this is a celebration and it’s been amazing to see S6 reach this point. You guys are the best. That’s the takeaway!

M: Sammmme! I am so thankful to everyone, especially those who flew in to meet here!

A: What I love to see is just how everyone here loves games! It’s a genuine passion and refreshing to see the kind of enthusiasm that comes with a new studio.

That wraps up this special edition of Ask the Team!
Again, please make sure to check out our blog post of the S6 Summit here:
https://www.singularity6.com/news/s6-2022-summit

Is this your first time joining us? No problem!

1. Head on over to #851872239435644928, and feel free to ask away any burning questions you have relating to Palia. 🔥

2. Scroll through and upvote any other questions you'd like to see answered. 📜

3. We'll close the channel for the next round and sort by the most upvotes.📈

Submissions for the next round will be accepted until
⏰ <t:1666994400:f>. ⏰

Why the long period? Because this next round of Ask the Team will be your last chance to submit a question for 2022! We are looking to evaluate our effort as we head into the holiday season and **will be taking a break **after the next round is posted. So please make sure to submit a question if you have one!

If you have any comments or feedback, I’ll be sticking around #💬│palia-discussions for a bit.

See you there!

[primal karma]

Welcome, Gentle Palians, to the latest edition of <@&1040421672538357922>!
(And the first time using our shiny new ATT tag! )

This month, you can look forward to hearing more about topics like:

- Plans for Future NPCs (Vega, Sr. Narrative Designer)
- Chat Features (EinarHugsBestHugs, Lead Meta-Systems Designer)
- What We Learned from our Playtests (Aidan, Game Director)
- Shared Housing (Eris, Senior Producer)```

**Disclaimers:**

> **Questions will remain temporarily closed** for the holiday as S6 winds down. They will reopen when we return on **Monday, January 2nd, 2023! 🕯️** The next batch of answers will be posted the **second week of February.** ![z_hearts](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/847112666065141810.webp?size=128 "z_hearts") 

> We are committed to building trust with our players brick-by-brick, answering only questions we feel confident about. We also don't want to overshare, so that you can experience those magical moments of discovery for yourself! It's a delicate balance, and we are so excited that you’re excited. Please know that us not answering a question may be due to the topic being about a feature that is still a work-in-progress, or it has already been answered.

> Please also note some questions have had words, spelling, or phrases edited from the original submission for better readability.

Without further ado...

🔽 Read on for the latest Q&A! 🔽

*Curious about all our past Ask the Team Responses? 👀*
*Find the full archive here:*
*https://bit.ly/PaliaAskTheTeam*
![Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/974094264797638677.webp?size=128 "Blank")

1️⃣ From @flint mist:

I know dating and marrying NPCs is a thing, but will you be able to marry another player? I'd love to play this game with my partner and share that aspect with them in the in-game world as well…

Vega: Not currently, but this is something we're looking into ways to support in the future! Of course, you're always free to use Kilima Village as a venue for your nuptials or reception even before we get systems in to support this 💐

AmeliaMarz: Might we suggest the gazebo near the village center?

2️⃣From @lusty elbow:

What does marrying an NPC mean, gameplay-wise? Are there any benefits or special things you can do when you are married that you could otherwise not?

Vega: You can't currently marry an NPC. You can, however, romance and date NPCs. Once you reach a certain level with the NPC you're romancing, you'll have the chance to exchange pins with them- sort of like going steady! Wearing these pins will give you bonus increases to relationship points you earn with those specific NPCs whose pins you're wearing, and other NPCs will comment on your equipped pins. Also, the further you develop your relationship with NPCs, the more story content you unlock!

3️⃣** From @glass widget:**

Looking at the handful (okay, big handful) of NPCs currently announced, it seems a very small number, even for a village.

🔹 Will there be other named NPCs added that we can friend, and for those wanting to … the possibility of romance?
🔹 **Will there be unnamed NPCs added to help make the world more alive? **
🔹 Will there be more added down the line as the story progresses?

**Vega: ** This is a great opportunity to talk about how we think about creating NPCs! While we do have a list of post-launch NPCs we're planning on, we always want to make sure that the NPCs present in Palia feel rich and meaningful, over abundant and nondescript. Taking the time to make sure they have deep backstories and connections with other NPCs is very important to us. This includes building both new romance options as well as a lot of new friendship options in the narrative, as well.

With that in mind, our list of potential NPCs is growing all the time! There’s also an opportunity to leave the door open for more NPCs based on where the community spends their time. Player feedback can influence the kinds of NPCs we add in the future!

And as for unnamed NPCs wandering around, with some rare exceptions, every NPC you meet in Kilima will be named and have full friendship quest lines and content associated with them. When we branch out into bigger and more populated maps, we may introduce generic NPCs to help flesh out busier areas.

4️⃣ From Arielle#7374:

Some of my greatest experiences in any MMO have been the random encounters with complete strangers. Sometimes it's good to have a zone/area chat, but sometimes I just want to talk to the people directly in front of me. What kind of chat will be supported? Will there be proximity chat? Text based and/or voice based proximity chat?

**EinarHugsBestHugs: **We are excited about all different kinds of voice chat features, but we are taking our time with adding them to Palia. When it comes to Voice Chat, there is a lot to think through around what is the right approach for player safety and comfort. For now, we are focusing on making our text-based chat experience as smooth and safe for players as possible.

With text-based chat, we are actively working towards a local chat feature, and as of right now, we do have chat available for Zones, Communities (FKA “Neighborhoods”), and Parties (smaller, temporary groups). One detail to note is that our zones are not intended for events like big raids, so chat will still have a cozy feel to it.

5️⃣ From @sick vigil:

There's a lot of stuff you all are showing us about the game and the alpha tests which is super exciting! What things did players not enjoy in the playtest, and how are their concerns being heard and addressed?

**Aidan: **We’re very happy to hear you’re enjoying the sneak peeks so far! A big part of the Alpha phase of development is absolutely getting feedback from real players. It is immensely helpful in making sure we’re on the right track, validating assumptions and sometimes exposing unexpected feedback that helps us course correct and iterate effectively.

We also utilize a variety of approaches to collect feedback from these tests including player sentiment, user research, and collecting data, evaluating each carefully before deciding whether we’ll make any new moves.

Some areas that these tests have caused the dev team to rally around improving include:
🔹 Providing more community-oriented goals
🔹 Additional content, notably quests
🔹 Better supporting roleplaying with features like furniture interactivity
🔹 Tons of UI / UX enhancements
🔹 Accessibility features

The team is particularly excited about some of the new quest content that has been added to the game recently which dives deeper into the lore and mystery that abounds in Palia! We also talk a lot about how best to take advantage of the fact that Palia is a massively multiplayer game - which is resulting in a variety of new ways to collaborate, interact, and play together.

We also want to make sure everyone can play in a way that is comfortable for them, and will be pursuing more accessibility features like keybindings and controller support, which were sorely missed by many players in our tests so far.

6️⃣ (Amelia note: Multiple people asked this one!)

Can Players share a house together?

Eris: Oooh, fancy question! This is one of our most frequently asked Ask The Team questions, and we've given some shorter answers in the past, like:

"At the moment, you CAN be a good community member and help water your friends’ crops just in case they missed it, and you can cook together in an attempt to make that perfect, high quality dish (and hopefully not ruin it)! But for any additional cooperation, that’s something that we definitely want players to have a level of access to, this being a game about community and building a society together…buuuut we’re not ready to have that feature tested with the community just yet."

We've talked before about how we really enjoy features like shared housing as gamers ourselves, and how we currently support features like watering each other's gardens, and cooking together in each other's kitchens.

We have been working quite a bit on this area of the game, and though we've made some good progress that we're excited about internally, we unfortunately STILL aren't able to talk about it further YET, but plan to share more with you in much greater detail in the future!

❄️ ☃️ ❄️ **And with that, Palians, we wrap up Ask The Team for 2022. **❄️ ☃️ ❄️

We will be back in the New Year to open up questions in #851872239435644928 once again! Look forward to another round of team answers the second week of February. ♥️

But don’t go too far! We have some extra exciting sneak peeks for you to meet, er, see, very soon, plus some holiday fun right around the corner.

If you have any comments or feedback, I’ll be in #💬│palia-discussions for the next hour or so.

See you there!

[primal karma]

A Very Special Ask The Team Announcement

Happy Friday, <@&1040421672538357922>erinos!

We will be sharing our latest edition of Ask The Team in a moment, but before that, we have an announcement to share with you about some changes to the formatting. ✍️
ATT is one of the most important events to us here at the studio. Not only does it provide you a small peek behind the curtain every month, it also keeps us as developers connected with the topics most important to the community, and keeps us directly connected to the folks who have been championing us from the very beginning. That's you!

As our development phases mature, and to help us continually update you, we’ll be making some improvements to make sure you get exactly the answers you’re looking for. Or, if we’re not ready to answer a question yet, we will make sure you know that directly. Here are the updates you will see, starting today:

🔹 #851872239435644928 will be open all day, every day! Instead of only being open for a week-long window, you will always be able to submit a question, whenever it comes to mind. (Look for it to open up shortly after the next ATT Q's are posted below!)

🔹 Instead of waiting a month to get a response, we will answer any questions we can every Friday (or more often, if we have the time!).

🔹 We plan on grouping our responses into roughly three categories, indicated by an emoji response by a member of the S6 Community team:
💖 Developer response
❌ We can’t answer that at this time
❓ We are not sure right now, but we’ll investigate and get back to you ASAP!

🔹 Our monthly installments will move from being occasional highlights of upvoted questions to a round-up of any questions answered in the past month, as well as some special sneak peeks. (Check out today's here! https://palia.info/Villagers)

Have a question about how Ask The Team works moving forward? Go on and submit it in #851872239435644928 , which will open in roughly 10 minutes!

And now, we have six, count ‘em SIX, answers from our Sixers today! Topics include:

🔹 Pub Games
🔹 Holidays & Festivals
🔹 Pets
🔹 Palia’s Content Release Schedule
🔹 Palian Technology
🔹 Palia’s Social Channels

Curious about all our past Ask the Team Responses?
You can find our full archive here:
https://singularity6.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/sections/7474069473684

Read on for the latest Q&A!

1️⃣ From @spring wagon

Will the game feature recreational games such as chess, billiards and other more widely known social games? Or will you even come up with your own mini board game that will be an iconic pastime for NPCs in Palia? It would be nice to play a game of chess in someone's beautiful home or even play a board game as part of the task/quest.

Aidan, Game Director: Hi Krecikowicz,

While there won’t be a ton of these at launch, features like this fit very well within the player experience of Palia, so expect these kinds of things to trickle in over time as we continue to patch and update the game. We’re particularly partial to putting power into the player's hands to be able to flex these experiences into games or versions of your own making!

2️⃣ From @rocky swallow

"Festivals" have always been a big part of most traditional life-sims, with some being original creations and others reflecting major real-world holidays. How will Palia handle holidays in-game with the accelerated day-night cycle, and can we expect to see unique Palian holidays throughout the year?

AmeliaMarz: Hi, Roan!

A form of this question was asked frequently during this edition of Ask The Team! We’ve talked a bit about this before, and below is what we’ve touched on in the past:

“We are definitely going to also have both seasonal and non-seasonal events. We will be drawing inspiration from holidays all across our own world while also coming up with ones that are uniquely Palian! Winter holidays are, in my humble opinion, some of the coziest so I’m personally very excited to bring that holiday coziness to Palia when the snow starts to fall.”

Aidan: When it comes to all the nitty-gritty around how events reflect the day-night cycle, or number of events throughout the year, those decisions will be determined after our current phase of work. Right now we’re focusing on designing and testing the fundamental functionality, which will inform a lot of those choices!

3️⃣ This question was asked by @dusty pebble and @naive musk!

A large part of games like Stardew Valley, Story of Seasons and Harvest Moon is the caring for and collecting from animals. Will we potentially see any pets or husbandry features in the future to complete the small farm feeling?

Amelia: This is a question we get a lot, and we always love talking about it!

When we last answered, we agreed that pets would be a great fit for Palia, and it would make sense for us to support multiple, distinct pet features over time. We now have a better sense of how pets might fit into our development, but we expect the core features here to release sometime after our initial release point.

However, there is one pet that you will meet in Palia right off the bat. Tau, Hassian’s trusty sidekick and resident bestest boy, will always be thrilled to see you! Here’s a sneak peek at his in-game model 👀

4️⃣ From @valid gazelle

How advanced will the technology in Palia be? For example, will we be able to use tractors and irrigation systems on our farms, or will it all be done by hand?

EmbrasAshes, Narrative Lead: Oooh, a technology question! This is a fun one.

So, Palia is set in a rough equivalent of the early industrial age, only they use clean energy sources over fossil fuels. In modern times this is primarily due to wanting to strike a balance with nature, but magic has also had a major impact on the history and technological evolution of Palia.

Bourboun, Senior Designer: To answer your more specific gardening question, this is currently done primarily by hand, but something like a steam powered tractor could exist in the world of Palia.

5️⃣ From PixelShaun#9024

What kind of ongoing things to do will there be to ensure the longevity of the game? Constant release of content would really help give this game legs and solidify itself as a long standing cozy MMO.

Aidan: Hi, PixelShaun!

We absolutely agree with you that new content is crucial to the longevity of Palia. We aim to provide new content regularly through about 24 patches a year. As a new studio launching a live game, we recognize that we still have some work to do to perfect our timing, which could be tweaked due to holidays or other internal factors, such as our annual Hack-a-thon.

Of course, some of these patches will pack a bigger punch than others. Smaller patches may include things like quality of life improvements, new decor and new outfits. While other patches throughout the year will include major feature and content updates, like a new skill, community feature, or the next chapter of the main evolving world questline.

We have so much we want to do in Palia, and our early development has only touched the tip of the iceberg!

6️⃣ Also From Gezelle#5803!

Any chance for a community chat Q&A stream type of thing, like on YouTube or Twitch? I know that there've been (faint) whispers about something like that a long time ago in the past Pre-Alpha days, and some recent Q&A from the past year mention trying to get information out in areas beyond Discord.

AmeliaMarz, Sr. Community Lead: We’re super eager to get a stream going on YouTube or Twitch! Not only because they’re a great way to get the community involved, but also as a benefit to the studio to chat directly with excited Palians.

While we likely won’t be livestreaming publicly until closer to release, we do have some plans in the works to share more information on our other channels like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube Community. I’ll post some links to those channels below so you can follow along 😊

As we get closer to bringing in more testers, we plan on ramping up our communications on our site’s blog, and even getting more Palia news out there on Reddit!

It’s very important to us that the majority of players get to experience Palia for the first time with fresh eyes. There’s nothing like uncovering an entire world piece by piece with friends, and we want to protect that journey as much as possible! That being said, we do hope to share some fresh screenshots, GIFs, and additional Palia 101 tidbits in the coming months.

📡 SOCIAL MEDIA 📡

• Official Website: https://palia.com/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/playPalia
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/playPaIia/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/playpalia/
• YouTube: https://bit.ly/3GTsCUt

And with that, we now must return you to your regularly scheduled programming. 📺

Remember!
We have now shared that the way we approach Ask The Team will be updated, and you can read all about it here:
#851872239435644928 message

TL;DR:
#851872239435644928 will now be open 24/7, with individual questions answered in a thread every Friday 🧵
Hope to see you there starting.....updates permissions.... NOW!

If you have any comments or feedback, I’ll be in #💬│palia-discussions for the next hour or so.

See you there!

[primal karma]

Ask The Team: Mega-Edition!

Well Met, <@&1040421672538357922> friends!
It's time for the latest and greatest in Ask The Team

Since we last saw you in this channel, we have been trying a new approach - Instead of keeping your submission period open for only a week, #851872239435644928 is now open 24/7! And, instead of monthly responses, your friendly local CM jumps in and answers everything we can every Friday. For any questions we don't have the answer to, but might be able to with some investigation, we have been adding a little ❓ reaction to the question, bookmarking it for future Mega Editions of Ask The Team...like today!

Although we haven't been able to fully answer every ❓ post, we're excited to give you a little into what we have below - keep reading to unearth all the deets!

🔹 Hunting Skill Details
🔹 Gardening Skill Details
🔹 Stat Trackers
🔹 Instanced Housing
🔹 Housing Location
🔹 Meet The Ormuu!
🔹 Player Age
🔹 Majiri Lifespan
🔹 Art Sneak Peek: Clouds
🔹 Why the name "Palia"?

Have a question you don't see answered below? Check out our full Ask The Team archives here!
https://palia.info/FAQ 🔗

1️⃣ Any Hunting Skill Details to Share?

**Bourbon, Sr. Designer: ** Hunting in Palia is collision-based and real time - arrows fly where you aim, are affected by gravity, and need to physically hit their target. It is skill based, but we keep it cozy by slowing the pace down a bit. You don't have to be both accurate AND fast like a shooter. You can also acquire special arrows that help, along with hunting as a group with your friends!

2️⃣ How Fully Fledged Will The Gardening System Be?

Bourbon, Sr. Designer: With gardening you can till the ground, plant seeds, water your crops every game day, pull weeds, use fertilizer, and harvest your crops when ready. You can improve your gardening tools to make this faster and easier, and the crops you grow can be used in a variety of cooking dishes. There's a couple more features to the system that we aren't quite ready to talk about yet, but are eager for players to experience themselves in game!

3️⃣ Will There Be A Stat Tracker, Like "Furthest Shot Arrow" To Hit Prey?

Aidan, Game Director: This is a fun idea, and there are some stats we’ll be tracking in order to unlock a wide variety of accomplishments in the game. In general, they won’t get as detailed as your example stat suggests at launch.

You can also expect us to periodically publish infographics that showcase fun stats for the community overall, like this infographic we shared from Alpha 2!

4️⃣ Will Player's Houses Be Instanced Or Present In The Open World?

Gutterfoot, Sr. Game Designer: Currently, player’s homes are instanced, which allow anyone on your friends list to come and visit to cook, garden, and more together. From your plot you will be able to jump into global chat, access your friends list, and fulfill friend requests.

We talk a lot at the studio about how we can build on this, increasing a players’ immersion in the world of Palia. And we are currently working on even more features around how you can play together at your home that we’re excited to share in the future!

5️⃣ Are houses location-based (select house by a river, for example)?

Gutterfoot, Sr. Game Designer: While we don’t have any plans for location-based homes right now, we absolutely love this idea and have had lots of great discussions around this. We have gotten lots of great feedback from testers around the environment in the home plot, and we hope you enjoy what we have to offer!

6️⃣ What Are These "Ormuus" We Keep Hearing About?

Vega, Sr. Narrative Designer: There’s a critter roaming around Kilima Village you haven’t met yet - Ormuus! Ormuus provide the milk players purchase from shops for their recipes in cooking. Fun fact! All ormuus, regardless of gender, have horns!

7️⃣ How old is the player considered to be?

Vega, Sr. Narrative Designer: Great question! The player character enters when they are grown, as a young adult.
Eventually, we will be adding more options to customize your character to your fantasy even more.

8️⃣ What’s the lifespan of the Majiri?

Vega, Sr. Narrative Designer: The M ajiri lifespan is a little longer than a human lifespan. Where we think of the human lifespan as roughly 100 years old, the Majiri live to about 150 years old. So they’ve seen a little bit more history, and invest even more in the future of their surroundings.

9️⃣ Will There Be Clouds?

Aidan, Game Director: Yes! We recently added clouds to our Palian skies to add even more beauty and realism to our landscapes. Here’s a collection of pictures taken by tester Whirl to show how Palia looks at different times of day, featuring big fluffy clouds in the background!

🔟 Why the name Palia? Where does it come from?

Aidan, Game Director: We asked ourselves, “what do we want the name to say?” We wanted it to sound whimsical, unique, and like a place that was exciting, fantastical, and yet still simple and easy to say.

We considered thousands of different names before making the hard call to journey into…PALIA.

Fun Fact: Palia is derived from Greek for 'old', which is a nod to the deep history ingrained in the game's experience. 📚

Vega, Sr. Narrative Designer: Oh! And another question we get a lot is “how do you pronounce ‘Palia’”? The Majiri pronounce it Pay-lee-uh, but you can pronounce it however you like as long as you call it “home”! 😉

And that, gentle Palians, concludes this round of Ask The Team: Mega Edition!

Thank you to @halcyon crest , @proper lily , @wanton cape , @lusty talon , @vapid kernel , @main swallow , @dull brook , @glass widget , @crystal glacier (AMAZING THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE VIA YOUR USERNAME), and @opal oxide for your questions!

For any whose questions have not yet been answered, do not fear! They are still in the basket for future consideration.

Have another question for the Palia team? Be sure to post it in #851872239435644928, where we're answering every curiosity, question, and conspiracy we can! Until next time, friends - thank you for keeping us sharp, and honest I hope you have a cozy rest of your week!

[primal karma]

Ask The Team: Mega-Edition!

Happy Thursday, <@&1040421672538357922>erinos!

We have a new muffin-basket of questions & answers for you, straight from the developer oven 😋

This month, we're answering questions about:

🔹 How the Creatures of Palia are Named
🔹 What is a Kitsuu, anyway?
🔹 Resource-Sharing
🔹 In-Game Ecological Themes
🔹 Character Naming

Behind the scenes, we've been talking a lot about how we can continue making Ask The Team a meaningful experience for you all, particularly as we ramp up our playtests! Be sure to keep checking in here as we continue our quest to bring you even deeper insights into the world of Palia

Have a question you don't see answered below? Check out our full Ask The Team archives here!
https://palia.info/FAQ 🔗

1️⃣ How are the creatures named?

EmbrasAshes, Narrative Lead: Oooh, great question! “Chapaa” is a Lakota beaver spirit, and sernuks are named for “Cernunnos”, a Celtic god associated with deer.

Vega, Narrative Designer: When it comes to creature names, we typically take mythical creatures of legend and "Palia"-fy them. When we think about naming them, we approach our thinking with a combination of sounds that evoke onomatopoeias.

Overall, the name is about a vibe that we then apply Palia naming conventions and spelling to.

Oh! And then the tried and true method: We put all the names into a wiktionary afterwards to make sure we didn't make a name that doesn't translate culturally, or had a meaning we didn’t intend.

2️⃣ We’ve had these Kitsuu emojis in Discord since launch - do you have more information about them?

Vega: Kitsuu aren’t currently in Palia yet. They are a very rare creature that are associated with both ancient human AND ancient Majiri legends, and they've been around for a long time.

They are understood to be very real, but sighting them is kind of a big deal. They're particularly associated with the element of fire.

3️⃣ How are resources going to be managed? Like is it going to be where they go away until they respawn or will it basically be infinite where anyone can come up to an ore or something and mine it?

**Bourbon, Sr. Designer: **Providing players with an immersive, multiplayer world is a pillar for Palia, and shared spawns are a part of that. That means if a Chapaa, a bug, or a mining node exists for one player, it exists for all players, and when it's gone, it's gone for all.

This could lead to competition over resources that is un-cozy, and to counter that, Palia is very generous with shared credit. Every player that participates at all in gathering a resource (such as doing any amount of damage to a mining node) gets full credit for XP, loot, quest completion, etc.

When it comes to hunting creatures and bugs, we go even further - you don't even have to hit your target. As long as your shot is close enough, the game recognizes that you are trying to participate and credits you fully.

4️⃣ With climate change & wildlife protection being such big topics in the real world, will the game feature such elements as well?

Vega: Yes! There are actually quests in game during the main storyline that walk you through how Palians think about the natural world around them. Palians as a rule are more conservationally-minded, and practice very sustainable techniques when it comes to hunting, forestry, industry, etc. Everything is done with a thought for how it will affect the world in the long-term.

There are also mechanics in the game itself that support this- you can plant new trees from old ones you've chopped down, for example, and every action you undertake in the game is understood to be part of a larger ecosystem.

5️⃣ How restrictive will naming be?

Firebird, Game Systems Designer: This question is just for me!

We’re trying to balance being as open as possible to legitimate, real-world names, limiting the leetspeak and “username-y” names you mentioned, while also preventing impersonation and trolling.

Some steps we’ve taken are:

1. There are limits on which special characters can be used, how many, and where. This will make it harder to abuse them, but we cannot completely prevent it without also blocking a lot of legitimate names.

2. Players will create two names during character creation: a unique “Full Name” and a non-unique “Nickname”. The “Full Name” will be what’s primarily seen by other players in UI, chat, and above their head in-game, so bad actors can’t impersonate other players. “Nicknames” can be seen in NPC dialogue or when you hover over other players in UI. Multiple players can use the same Nickname, so that if there are many "James", you can all use that Nickname to immerse yourself more deeply in the world of Palia when interacting with NPCs.

3. Only letters affect uniqueness to minimize the usernamey tendencies, like tacking a number onto the end. e.g., if someone already has the Full Name “James”, “James86” will count as the same Full Name, so it can’t be used. This also helps prevent some impersonation as it’s harder to create a Full Name that looks almost identical to another.

And that, gentle Palians, concludes this round of Ask The Team: Mega Edition!

Thank you to @modest dragon , @snow gust , @glass widget , and @sly stag for your questions!

Don't go too far, friends - we'll be posting more updates . Until next time - thank you for keeping us sharp, and honest I hope you have a cozy rest of your week!

[primal karma]

📢 A Very Special Ask The Team Public Service Announcement

The road to Alpha has been long, winding, and full of questions and curiosities. As you might have seen in #game-news, we are now reaching the end of that road, and starting a new journey: Palia's Beta, Starting <t:1690995600:D>.

With Beta on the horizon, we are now formally sunsetting Ask The Team as we have known it.

We know there are many questions - please be sure to check out the thread below for all the news that’s fit to print.

🧵 **Ask The Team FAQs ** 🧵

[zinc basin]

Hello, Palians!

Thank you so much to everyone for sending those questions over and for being so patient. A few reminders, there were over 300 questions so it was impossible for us to answer all of them. When I first created the Discord, I envisioned having at most 2,000 folks. There’s quite a bit over that (and we are so happy to have each and every one of you here!).

It was important to us at the studio to give meaningful responses. We didn’t want this to be just a collection of “we’re not sharing those details yet.”

Let’s talk a bit about why that might be the answer to some questions. The biggest one is that the game is still in Pre-Alpha, some of these things are still in flux. We don’t want to give the impression that these topics are already set in stone or confuse people into thinking a “maybe” is a definite.

Some of these topics, for example the one regarding monetization, we feel are really complex discussions that merit their own stand-alone communication with players. The community’s trust is such an important thing for us so we want to make sure that when we do talk about it, we do so in a transparent and honest way. (Spoiler: We’re not answering that question below)

I’m also going to be making some adjustments to how we do these Q&As given that the interest has far exceeded what I had planned for.

We are moving to a monthly format. This gives us the opportunity to involve more folks at the studio and we can focus on giving meaningful answers to the questions.

Questions will open now (Thursday June 10) and remain open until June 24 at 10:00AM PT, with the next Q&A answers going live on Thursday, July 8th at 2:00PM PT.

However, this isn’t the only time we’ll be sharing information about the game. Make sure you keep an eye out for art drops on Discord as well as reveals of our villagers on our social channels.

Cheers,
Neleimour

1. What’s Pre-Alpha?

The briefest explanation is that pre-alpha is a fully playable experience that has many of the initial launch features but not all of them. It is also going to be under NDA, so there will be no streams to the public.

We know that the pre-alpha is not yet the cozy experience of your dreams and that we plan for it to be when you enter the world at launch. The main goal is testing and feedback. As such, testers should expect to run into crashes, bugs, and experiences that are not yet at the level they need to be.

Think of the Pre-Alpha like an appetizer sampler from a new restaurant. Except testers get to tell the cooks (us) which things they liked best, which things they didn’t like and why, or what’s missing!

-Neleimour

2. Will thousands or hundreds be let into the Pre Alpha?

Question by @sharp cobalt!

We will invite 1400 people from the player community.

For context, 8 days ago, Neleimour and I talked about how we were hoping this little trailer from an unknown studio might bring in a few hundred sign ups. Needless to say, the response has blown us away and now we have hundreds of thousands of sign ups for our small test. We are not scoped for that.

However, we will have many more tests leading up to our launch, which we expect to run at higher player counts.

-WizardCrab

3. Is there an estimated date of when Pre-Alpha keys will be emailed out?

Question by: @hushed lava!

There’s no date to share right now and I know that’s not the answer you all want to hear. It’s really important for us to build your trust and there’s a few more things we need to line up before we can narrow down the start date. We want to make sure that when we do share a date, it’s one we are confident we can keep.

-Neleimour

4. Will account progress be reset later, or will progress we make in the pre-alpha stay on the account permanently?

Question by: @remote agate

Progress from the Pre-Alpha will not remain past the Pre-Alpha.

-Nyvkul

5. What is expected of testers during the pre-alpha?

Question by: @soft geode !

I would encourage testers to expect lots of bugs and unpolished features. Remember, this is a ***very ***early look at the game and there’s still a lot of work to do to get it to be the cozy experience dreams are made of.

We also want our testers to be very vocal with their feedback. There will be some exclusive Discord channels on this server they’ll get to join. Whether the testers liked or disliked something, we want to know as there are plenty of chances for us to make changes based on what the players express.

-Neleimour

6. What about monetization?

Question by: Too many of you for me to ping.

This is by far the most asked question both in the #851872239435644928 channel as well a highly discussed topic throughout the server in general. I know this isn’t the answer everyone wants to hear, but I want to be upfront about it. We’re not ready to talk about that yet.

So I ask for a bit more patience. We’ll make sure to share that information as soon as we can.

• Neleimour

7. I have noticed that you are being compelled by some to add PvP and elements of competitive play. There is also a fan narrative asserting that these elements will be present but “just not in the alpha.” Can you please explain the vision in a way that provides clarity on this topic? 

Question by: @high bolt

Hi Athyrmose!

Thanks for this question. It’s been a notable point of confusion in the community and so it’s a key point I’d like to address today.

Your initial impression is correct, but there is some nuance to that answer I can hopefully clarify a bit now. First off, the core vision and target experience for Palia centers around creating a collaborative, cozy, and safe multiplayer experience. An inherent part of providing that safety is that players know that they exist in a world largely devoid of physical, social, and emotional threats. As such, we feel that player versus player (pvp) combat is antithetical to our core experiential goals.

Additionally, this is an area that many great games we love have invested in deeply, and since it’s not our core, we’re unlikely to produce an experience that measures up to player expectations were we to divert our focus into this area as well.

Having said that, we do believe that there are some competitive play opportunities that can make sense in our world, in large part because they’re the kind of light hearted competitive experiences we expect to find amongst family or close friends. A Sunday afternoon card game can be cozy. Racing on the beach can still feel like vacation.

Additionally, many of our core systems ladder up quite naturally into an option for a little competitive play. I know I’ve spent a lot of time with my family watching cooking competitions, and maybe you’re eager to be recognized for your interior design skills?

Regardless, the thing that will remain consistently true is that competition is not our core, and any competitive options we add will not impinge on the core game experience, and we will strive not to tempt you into engagement with their rewards.

-Aidan

8. About gathering resources. Will the "Object" disappear after being gathered so that you actually have to "camp" the spot to harvest it before other players do it first? Or can you just harvest it and it will have a local cooldown for the player, while other players can still harvest it. 

Question by: @potent tangle

Hi The Bait,

A core part of our goal with Palia is to make the multiplayer environment a collaborative one. A major part of this is how we address the various loot systems in the game that would otherwise turn them into a source of tension and competitive play. We have a wide variety of solutions we’re continuously testing in this area and upcoming playtests will help us assess where we’re hitting those goals and where we need additional work. Suffice to say, friends and strangers are welcome.

-Aidan

9. Will we need to eat/drink or sleep?

Question by: @manic bobcat

Hey, Hayden!

These activities are not strictly required, but they will all have a variety of benefits in the game that make engaging in professions like cooking have real worth. From an incentives perspective, these systems are oriented around having strong benefits for engaging with them over strong penalties for not.

-Aidan

Bonus fun question!

What is the ONE game each member of the S6 team would always come back to relax and never gets bored? The more people answer the better

Neleimour - Destiny (warlock!)
WillT - Slay the Spire and Hades
Gubjub - Overwatch and WoW
Eris - Overwatch and Hades
Omnomnom - Stardew Valley and Diablo 3
Laurisse - Super Mario Galaxi
Bourbon - Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Cautomaton - Elite Dangerous (particularly in VR and his own gaming cockpit)
Fancypantsmcgee - Minecraft
Frogg - Cages of Qud or Rimworld
EmbrasAshes - The Sims
Sheevok - Factorio
Pappy - Phantasy Star Online 2
EinarHuigBestHug - As long as they're playing with friends: Valorant, Stardew Valley, some pirate MMO and LoL
WoahNonstop - Planet Coaster
BuscoBearn - Minecraft
Weaver - Rez
ComposerSchmidt - Age of Empires II or WoW

[zinc basin]

Hey, Palians!

Thank you so much for submitting your questions. Took me quite a little over a day to sort through all of them! As usual, we tried to answer as many of them as possible, but we couldn't get to all of them.

Like the previous round of questions, we tried focusing on questions we could give meaningful answers to.

Also, give me a few minutes to reopen the channel after I'm done posting all the questions!

1. Will we be able to do any meaningful progression by ourselves or will quests / progression usually require us to team up with other players?
Hey @timber meteor,

Our goal with Palia is for it to be fun solo and even better together. As such, we think it’s critically important to always have meaningful things you can do in the game when playing solo, whether it’s because you’re waiting for friends to come online or it’s your preferred way to enjoy the game. That being said, there will also be activities that either require or are significantly more manageable when done with others.

• Aidan

2. How is a community based mmorpg different from the "standard" mmorpg, what are you doing different?
Hi @full inlet ,

While we do share some feature overlap with traditional MMORPG’s, Palia’s genre is Community Simulation MMO. Which means our core loop and primary gameplay systems have a very different focus. One way we like to put it is that all of the sideshows in an MMORPG (crafting, gathering, housing, etc.) are our main events, where we pour all our energy and resources.

• Aidan

3. Will the camera be isometric or third-person?
Hi @light osprey,

Palia uses a third-person camera perspective similar to traditional MMORPG’s or Action Adventure titles. We felt this helped really immerse the player in the world and gave a new perspective on genre hallmarks like gardening and fishing.

• Aidan

(Neleimour Note: Y'ALL SAW NOTHING!)

3.5 Will we be able to express ourselves through the exterior of our houses? for example the choice of putting a structural beam in a different place. Expanding the house to a side of choice. multitude of room shapes to choose from etc?
Hi @lean quiver,

There will be a lot of choice to be had in your home’s design, including the exterior. Additionally, wherever the system is at launch is just the beginning and we expect the player base will help us decide which new housing customization features we’ll prioritize first.

• Aidan

(Neleimour Note: Questions are unrelated, but I figured keeping them together would help with clarity due to my copy/paste mixup.)

4. Will lore develop as time goes on? i.e. will events happen in game that affect the lore for future players?
Heya, @willow garnet!

Yes, we want to continue developing the story after release. We want our story to feel alive and we can achieve that through updates that introduce new story beats for players to dive into. We love the idea of giving the community the opportunity to affect the world and story through events, but that’s something we’d be exploring further down the line.

• EmbrasAshes

5. Tension and release is a very important part of quality storytelling/worldbuilding, and I worry that this game will become bland as a result. Are there any arguments you have against this perspective?
Great question!

For clarity, our goal is not to stray away from tension or challenging emotions when it comes to worldbuilding or storytelling, just to provide a safe and welcoming atmosphere for players to explore those story beats. In fact, in certain storylines, we want to actively engage the player in helping some of our villagers navigate negative emotional experiences as we believe that emotional intimacy can be a big part of what allows you to feel cozy with someone.

• EmbrasAshes

6. Will the development team be doing any live streams to answer questions or discuss features to the community like other game developers have done in the past?
Hey, @neat coral!

Yes! I’m a big fan of what other studios have done with streams (shoutout to Bungie) and we want to have more of them in the future. There’s a lot of value they bring not just for the community, but for the team as well.

We see streaming as an opportunity to foster and maintain a close connection with the community; and that’s one of our highest priorities as a team.

That being said, there are a few tech issues I need to work through before we do another stream. Contrary to popular belief, I do have a voice and it would be nice to not spend a whole stream writing backwards on a whiteboard.

-Neleimour

7. I know that now you are focusing on English, but, in the future, will we have a localized version for other languages, like portuguese?
Tudo bom, @near prairie?

Yes, our goal is to have the game available in many languages. I do want to point out that the localization is going to be a gradual process, as we continue to expand Palia to new territories.

The reason localization hasn’t started yet is that it’s actually one of the last steps in game development and we’re still some time away from reaching this stage.

We do appreciate the folks that have volunteered to translate the game, but it’s very likely we’ll be partnering with a vendor to translate it.

-Neleimour

PS: Hopefully I remembered the right greeting from my time with Blizzard's LatAm team 🙂

8. Will Pre-Alpha testers get a reward for having played it?
Heya, @rugged ermine!

If you are referring to an in-game reward, no. Given how small the pre-alpha will be, it felt unfair to everyone who expressed interest but wasn’t able to get in due to luck.

For now, we hope Pre-Alpha testers find value in knowing that their feedback is going to help us make Palia the best it can be.

-Neleimour

9. What is expected of us during the pre-alpha? Bugfinding, server testing, general feedback, etc.
Hi there, @soft geode!

One of the best ways our playtesters can help us is playing our game and experiencing our content in an organic way! We’ve done tons of tests of the individual pieces, but it’s hard for us to get a good idea of how the holistic experience feels. Are things well paced? Do resource requirements feel fair? These are areas where our knowledge isn’t great, so the more honest and candid feedback our playtesters can give us, the better!

It’s worth calling out that we don’t need the testers to actively try to break the game. That’ll probably happen on its own at this point. But telling us WHERE and HOW it breaks will be super helpful for us to track down and fix those issues going forward!

• Fancypantsmcgee

10. Do you guys as developers plan to play the game when it’s released?
Question by @deep mountain!

**EmbrasAshes: ** Absolutely, I’m already addicted to playing the game solo and I can’t wait to share the world we’ve created with our players.

Aidan: This is a game I’ve wanted to play for a very long time so I’m very excited about being a member of the community myself. Additionally, playing the game in an authentic fashion is a critical part of understanding what we’re currently delivering so we can empathize with the highs and lows players are experiencing.

**Neleimour: **Yes! I tend to log the most hours in the internal playtests we have done since I joined S6. As Community Director, I think playing the game is a great way of staying connected with the community and crucial when it comes to better advocating for things our players need.

Nyvkul: Yes! You can find me hunting and gardening 🙂 I’m not good at taking care of plants in real life, but my Palia crops are beautiful!

11. What is an unforeseen challenge you as a team have faced and how did you all overcome it? What have you learned from this experience?
Question by @fringe dust

I had to rewrite this a lot of times because it turned into an accidental blog. Palia has been in development for 3 years and there's been no shortage of challenges along the way, but I don’t think anything quite prepared us for making a game through a pandemic.

When WFH began, the studio had a little over 20 employees and since we’ve been remote we’ve doubled in size.

Being one of the folks that started remotely, I remember feeling like building bonds with my coworkers was going to be an issue. Turns out I was worrying for nothing! Our HR has actually done a good job at adapting the onboarding for an online experience and ensuring we get to meet as many folks across the studio as possible. It also helps that everyone is always willing to jump into a call to say hello.

Leadership is also very open about reminding us to take time off and understanding that these are weird times so life can happen at any moment (when I started I actually tried cancelling my vacation but our CEO made it clear taking time off was important).

We have also used games to help foster and build connections across the studio! Nothing brings you closer together than pocketing your Art Director as a Mercy while hollering for someone to take care of Bastion.

I’ve learned that over-communicating is often best and to make sure I’m clear with the things I need. I was also reminded of just how powerful games are when it comes to building friendships!

• Neleimour

PS: Most of the folks at the studio don’t realize I’m actually 9’0”.

Bonus question: Do you understand how FREAKING excited I am?!?
Question by @bleak venture

EmbrasAshes: I have an idea, because I too am FREAKING excited to share what we’ve been working on.
**Laurisse: **I for one, cannot wait to be able to play Palia with friends pretty soon! We have a lot of internal playtests, but I just wanna play it with you folks!!
Neleimour: I'M SO EXCITED I CAN'T EVEN.

[marble axle]

Ahoy Dear Palians,

The latest batch of developer answers are coming in hot, and a few hours earlier than expected!

It has been an absolute blast going through everyone’s questions. It’s super interesting to us to see what people want to know, and it helps steer us in the right direction. As you know, we aren’t always able to answer every question, but we do aim to answer any questions that we can give a good amount of substance to. We hope you get some juicy tidbits from the answers below!

And be sure to check back in to #851872239435644928 next week, when we will reopen the floor for even more questions to post in September.

1. I know that we can romance NPCs, but since Palia is multiplayer, will we be able to designate other players as "friend", "best friend", or "partner"?

Hi there, @shrewd kestrel!

You will certainly be able to designate friends, but we aren't currently expecting to have additional options available at launch. We do expect to be considering extensions to the friendship system in the future in which closer relationships are expressed in a meaningful way, possibly even having an impact on gameplay.

EinarHugBestHug

2. How diverse will clothing/customizing your character be? Like can i go from 'retired socialite with a husband who died of mysterious circumstances and now owns a winery' clothing to farmer hobo with one one available overall in the wardrobe?

Heya Mariie#2441,

You can absolutely shift your outfit and our goal is to have a wide variety of options; fashion is a big part of our game’s culture! But at launch, realistically, these will be pretty limited compared to our ambitions. Our plan is to constantly up our fashion game and give you everything from runway looks to hobo chic.

That being said, we do plan to allow you to change clothes from the available options fairly easily through any wardrobe furniture item, including allowing you to save outfit configurations for quick swaps.

EinarHugBestHug

3. Palia prides itself on being a 'cozy and open world' of the community sim genre, but no server selection means there will probably be phasing. That means developing a sense of community will be extremely tough and most likely non-existent, which worries me because that's what I, and many other players I have spoken to, are excited for. It's crucial for the game to survive in the early months of launch (especially if a player-driven economy is present), and I feel like player retention and engagement would be much higher if everyone knew each other as well. How do you plan to maintain a sense of community and togetherness within the vast amount of servers?

Hi @eternal pewter,

To make sure we're on the same page, I'm assuming Phasing refers to a system in which some aspect of a player's state in the game determines which of a set number of potential versions of the same map you actually appear on when entering that area. This is commonly done to allow for changes in the world to occur, but as you highlight, comes at the cost of potentially segmenting the player base across socially undesirable lines.

Your concerns with Phasing as it exists in other games are some of the reasons we’ve chosen not to employ that approach for Palia. Excluding some international restrictions, you will be able to play with any player, any time you like. Our server structure is fairly unique in the MMO space, and we believe it will be one of the features that helps us foster a sense of community and togetherness.

It's also important to highlight that groups above a certain scale also tend to struggle to create lasting community and social connection. That's why systems like Guilds exist. To take a pool of thousands or millions of players and cut that down to a manageable number of players with shared goals and expectations. We're betting on our server structure to help us meet this challenge too.

Aidan

4. I like to invest time into how my character looks in a game. Is this going to be a thing that has systems dedicated to it (like the WoW transmog system or the FF Glamour system), or will gear be more of an aesthetic thing in general?

Question By @Dargath Menar#5114

EinarHugBestHug: In general, visible “gear” in our game is purely cosmetic. There may be gameplay items that are visible, but they are not intended to interfere with any “look” you are trying to achieve. This gives players more choices to express their identity, rather than picking gear for the best possible stats.

AmeliaMarz: I’m with you, I invest way too much time into the details of my aesthetic (there may be spreadsheets). It’s a relief to know our choices won’t be constructed around the boost or stat a particular article gives us!

5. I have a serious question actually. As I understand it, pre-alpha is where S6 wants players to tell them what they like and don't like, so they can fix it. Is this only in pre-alpha or will it also be in alpha, beta, other tests or will those be more about bug fixing? I would really dislike it if most game-play and UI decisions will only be based upon what the Devs + 1400 people think. My concern is that once something has been coded, based upon early feedback, and is in the game, It can be hard to alter or remove. Especially if other mechanics depend on a core feature.

Hi @timber meteor,

There are many purposes to our pre-alpha testing, including game feedback, but also things like testing our tech, finding bugs, and learning how our studio fares operating a “live” MMO. So we’ll absolutely take feedback from our pre-alpha players and internal playtests to adjust the game and make it better, but honestly, I wouldn’t think of anything as set in stone. We plan to constantly update this game for as long as people play it, so it’ll never be done and we’ll never be done gathering feedback on how to make it better.

Some of that feedback will tell us we need to make changes, and sometimes that’ll be because we made the wrong choices and sometimes it’ll be because your (the players’) tastes have evolved. I see the concern since just a small portion of folks who are interested in Palia have gotten to weigh in that directly but I guarantee all of our players, now and future, will get a say in shaping this game.

-WizardCrab

6. "I didn't notice the question yet so: What's the expected player activity / How often should player login? Asking because most current MMOs feel more like chores - login daily do x/y (in mobile gaming space it's ""daily tasks"") and in the end waste a few hours ""having fun"".

Hi There @Okimo#1337,

We’ve tried to do a lot in the design of Palia to undermine the sense of ‘falling behind’ when you don’t play consistently. If we’re successful, Palia should feel like a game that’s always there for you when you need it, but doesn’t require radical or regimented devotion to enjoy or ‘play correctly.’ We want Palia to be a game that lets you play the way you want to play, when you want to play.

Aidan

7. So, my question is (and has probably been asked before), when will there be an open alpha/beta? Will there even be an open alpha/beta? Will the game only be publicly accessible on full release? I'm sure the whole community here is just dying to know when we finally get to meet the villagers of Palia (especially that Ashura fellow, he seems popular.

Hi @OverlordWaffle#0511,

As it so happens, Ashura’s story is currently the highest rated among pre-alpha testers! But, yes there will be many more tests. We haven’t yet determined when and what the nature of those tests will be, including decisions like how large they’ll be. As soon as we can let you know, we will. But now that we know players are interested we have a duty to build and scale Palia as fast as we can!

WizardCrab

8. What gameplay benefits if any will romance give us? Will we be able to opt fully out of using the romancing feature without it being a detriment to our gameplay?

Hello There @limpid shoal,

There will be a variety of exciting narrative-driven rewards. While you won’t have to romance everyone to get the best house, there will be benefits to deepening your knowledge of our world! We want players to be able to engage in the romance feature for intrinsic reasons, like genuine interest in getting to know the characters. The romances are not meant for extrinsic rewards. Therefore, there is no gameplay advantage for romance and no disadvantage for opting out.

EmbrasAshes

9. I noticed for Kenyatta's introduction card it says she hasn't chosen her "PATH". Is this just a general term you're using saying that she hasn't figured out her future career or is this some kind of player system? Like being able to choose a path as a Cook which would give you access to certain cooking skills, recipes, etc. that people that didn't choose that path would not have access to.

Great question, @lofty grove!

This is a narrative concept linked to a certain culture in our game of choosing a lifelong career in young adulthood. We have not yet determined if/ how the human characters (ie -- the players) will engage with this narrative concept. The main thing is we want players to be able to play the way they want to, and engage with systems as they see fit. So we are unlikely to unlock important gameplay content behind a narrative Path choice.

EmbrasAshes

10. Will there be seasons? and weather patterns such as snow, heavy rains and storms, routes, etc to go with them?

This question was asked by a lot of people!

We're not ready to talk about seasons at this time, but we will definitely have a dynamic weather system that will impact a wide variety of the gameplay content in the game. We're also making sure our audio experience is capturing the charm of being sheltered inside while listening to the patter of rain drops across your roof.

Aidan

11. Now for a fun question we’ve been asked many times! What... is the developers’ favorite comfort food? (Note: Make sure to ask this question with a full stomach.)
WizardCrab: Shepherd’s Pie.
VegetarianOrc: Rocky Road Ice Cream.
Cautomaton: Taiwanese street food.
WhoaNonStop: Ranch.
Frogg: Despite being lactose intolerant, southern style baked mac and cheese.
Eris: Can’t say no to a bowl of Spicy Ramen on a cold day. Or a hot day. Or any day.
S6Gubjub: Nothing beats a perfectly cooked brisket.
Pappy: I have a Toasted PBnJ basically every day of my life, and I regret nothing.
CacheFanatic: Chicken gumbo.
BuscoBear: Takeout: Pizza. At Home: Anything in the smoker.
AnimBaum: Simple: peanut butter Complicated: sourdough grilled pizza
Willbo Baggins: Pizza if I'm ordering. Cheeseburgers if I'm making myself.
ItNightshade: A good exotic or nicely dressed cheeseburger hits the spot any time of the week.
wecanbeheroes: For comfort food, I'd probably go with grilled cheese. My mom used to always make it when I was sick and now whenever I'm not feeling great I want it (though I can never get it as perfectly crispy and gooey as my mom).
Bourbon: Mine is tacos, both street and western style.
**EmbrasAshes:**Spaghetti with cheap grocery store sauce. Preferably Prego. My objectively favorite food is sushi, but cheap spaghetti reminds me of childhood.
Weaver: Pizza Hut pizza, with stuffed crust. Toppings vary, but usually some flavor of chicken.
EinarHugBestHug: this is not actually my FAVORITE comfort food, but my most desperate: Double Stuf™️ Oreos dipped in Betty Crocker strawberry frosting. That is when you know I've hit rock bottom.
Eirdar: Beef stroganoff
Aidan: Grandmother’s homemade biscuits and gravy.
Nyvkul: Dim Sum.
LC: I recently embraced the joy of fried chicken sandwiches and am slightly regretful that I have avoided them until this point in my life.

Thank you all so much for the great questions, inquiring minds! We’ll be opening up for another round next week in #851872239435644928, so please check back in to drop even more curiosities to our team

[primal karma]

Hello again, intrepid Palians!

Today we present to you a humble but mighty collection of questions answered, straight from the developer source. If this is your first time joining us, welcome welcome! Pull up a chair and help yourself to some Tavern Milk.

Before we dive in, we should remind everyone that we here at Singularity 6 do our best to select questions we know we can give really good answers to. It's important to us that our answers give you something nourishing to take away, rather than a vague "we're not ready to talk about that yet".

That being said, often that is the answer to your most commonly asked questions! This is why we have updated our #❔│game-faqs channel to make sure we're compiling all the most common questions in one place for your reference, even if the answer is "we are not ready to talk about that yet". And of course, you can always browse the previous questions we've answered right here in this channel. 👆

We hope that this month's responses 🎵 give you something to talk about/a little mystery to figure out 🎵 ...

Have another question you want to put through the Big Question Machine In The Sky? Pop on over to #851872239435644928, where we are now open for submissions today - October 6th 12:00pm PT!

1. Can you share some gameplay please? Even 10 seconds is good. Preferably showing other players too.
Welcome to our fair city @astral sedge! While we can’t show you the whole enchilada right now, we’d be happy to give you a little peek into what Palia feels like at a glance! Below is a few seconds of in-game capture from one of our playtest builds. A couple things to keep in mind:

This is all work-in-progress, and not representative of the final game at release. Some elements you see here may change.
The facial animations have not yet been implemented in our designs, but look forward to a peek at those in the near future!
The HUD display (controls, map, quest info) has been removed, as that is definitely still not final! But we think you’ll enjoy the peaceful atmosphere seen in this video.

If we're able to share more next time, we'll try to get some other players in the mix. 🙂

• AmeliaMarz

2. Will there be another survey for the next round of alpha testers? Or will they be picked from the one we already did?
Heya @lofty nymph!

We’re looking at everyone who has ever joined or signed up at all. Everyone who has signed up has the opportunity to get into our future tests. We may need to test based on specific computer hardware, but we do bring all submissions into consideration.

-WizardCrab

3. How much creativity will we be able to pour into our housing and decoration? I hope a lot since that's what I greatly enjoy about most games when I've done my exploration and gathering for the day.
Hi @summer spoke,

This is an area close to our hearts and critical to the identity of Palia. Our goal is to always be expanding the creative possibilities available for players to customize their housing plots. So expect a robust system at launch that continues to regularly expand with new content and systems over time. For example, we started the pre-alpha without the ability to customize wallpaper, but added it halfway through. Now it’s a new system we’ll be producing new content for regularly.

• Aidan

4. Do you have an in game mailbox? Can you send other players mail/items?
Hi @atomic sparrow,

Right now we have an adorable in-game mailbox (see concept pic) where you get mail from the Villagers. In the future we plan to leverage the mail system to allow players to send each other letters and gifts, but we are taking our time to make sure that those interactions feel meaningful. The mailbox will still be adorable then. 🙂

-EinarHugBestHug

Artist: Yangtian Li

Take for example, these two games:

Case Study 1: World Of Warcraft

It takes me about 3 weeks at most to finish an entire new expansion. After that, it is basically just doing the same old dailies over and over again. Repeating the same content is not fun, and I quit playing soon thereafter.

Case Study 2: Slay The Spire

Each time I play the game it feels like a new adventure. The replay value is so much more interesting and satisfying that I can go months and still feel like playing again.

How is Palia approaching the replayability design? What are you doing to make the game truly replayable, so that players look forward to coming back each day?```
Hi @valid tree, 

This is a great question and has been a key component we’ve been considering since the inception of Palia. The intention has always been to design Palia to be a game that can last for decades. That means regular content updates and a variety of systems built with replayability in mind.

Additionally, we expect that a huge aspect of the game that will keep it fresh and exciting are the other players you’re engaging with and building a community around. We’ve already seen exceptional creativity from the pre-alpha players, and expect the potential for other players to improve and expand your experience with Palia to continue to grow as we approach launch and beyond.

Finally, we know that not every feature in Palia will resonate to the same degree with every Palia player, and that’s not only ok, but intentional for many major systems. However, if you’re a person that enjoys community simulation games and doing activities with friends, then we’re doing everything we can to build a game for you.

- Aidan

I think this data might give us non-players an idea of where the game is at at the moment.. obviously it might also be closely guarded data so I'm not honestly expecting that you reveal it just like that, thought I'd ask though.```
Hi @oblique moat! 

We do have some fun statistics that can be shared! Check out this nifty infographic we created below 🙂 While it doesn’t include information about session lengths and how they were affected over time, we can tell you that many players stuck around and found a lot of value in the social and customization features of the game. They also started to develop their own in-game community events, so testers created their own organic reasons to keep coming back. It was really remarkable to see.

In terms of communication methods, we used private Discord channels. These included specific categories of feedback, as well as some voice channels where we conducted developer deep dives on different elements of the game. We learned a lot from conducting the Pre-Alpha playtest, and are eager to apply those learnings to our next phase of testing.

*( Please note, you will need to click this image and then open it in another browser to behold its full glory ![ChapaaSquish](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/862734045418618911.webp?size=128 "ChapaaSquish") )*

- AmeliaMarz

7. Are there any plans for supporting a 'collectathon' style of play? Maybe something like the museum in animal crossing where you can show off all the different types of fish and other stuff you've collected, or a way to check someones profile and see all the different things they've caught?
Hi there @empty radish ,

To start with you will have the ability to see what kind of resources you’ve personally seen and collected (fish, crops, etc.), we definitely expect it will be a challenge to collect them all! In the future we’ll be exploring a variety of collection activities you can pursue as a group with your Neighborhood. We absolutely want players to have the ability to appreciate your hard earned collections and accomplishments, so expect a variety of ways to share if you’re interested in doing so.

• EinarHugBestHug

8. Instead of a 'romance' option for NPC's--could we get a 'friend' path--you know, for those of us who aren't into the whole polyamory thing, or who want a deeper relationship with a character but don't want to have to 'marry' them in order to achieve it? I'm thinking like Persona 4 -- the romance options there could also end in a friendship option instead, but you still got a very similar story arc.
Hi @proven oak,

Absolutely! In fact, the “main” story arc for each NPC is unlocked through the friendship system. The romance is intended to be a separate arc that players can engage with completely optionally. Completing the romance portion of the story adds flavor and specificity to your relationship with the NPC but it will NOT affect your ability to complete their story arc. While we do want the romance to feel meaningful and satisfying, we don’t believe that close relationships need to be romantic in order to be meaningful. And neither do the citizens of Palia!

• EmbrasAshes

🦋 🦋 🦋 🦋 🦋 🦋 🦋 🦋 🦋 🦋

Aaand we're back!

Thank you all for keeping us sharp with your questions, and letting us know what you're most interested in! We hope that between these responses and the inside look at the Pre-Alpha over on the Palia blog (https://bit.ly/paliablog) that you've been given a lot to unpack this month from Singularity 6.

Look forward to even more tantalizing insights . In the meantime, did any of these answers spark even more questions?** Head over to #851872239435644928 now through October 6th**, and it may just be answered in next month's installment of ... ASK THE TEAM!

[primal karma]

⏰⏳**What time is it? Ask The Team Time! **⏳ ⏰

🕯️Happy Almost-Halloween, Palians!🕯️

Today, I am summoning the power of @everyone, because there is some really good information below (Number 9 will shock you!). Settle in with a blanket, some tunes, and a cuppa tea to prepare for some fun-sized Palian goodness! 🍫🍬

Questions are now open for you in #851872239435644928 - if this is your first time joining us, welcome welcome! You can read all about how this process works in #851872171403640873. Or, if you're the shy type, just throw an upvote on the questions you want to see answered most in the submit-your-question channel.
Submissions for the November Q&A will close on Friday, November 5th at 12:00pm PT, to reopen again at the end of the month.

Without further adoooo, let's begin!

1️⃣ OPEN-WORLD vs. INSTANCED
1. How huge and open the world is gonna be? Is exploration gonna be a big part of the gameplay? - kuroharra

Hi @keen agate,

Palia will definitely feature exploration and discovery as an exciting part of your experience with the game. However, we know it’s impossible for us to create enough content that exploration can be a permanent part of the experience, but it is something we can continuously reinvigorate as we expand the world of Palia over time.

In terms of the size of our world at launch, it’s also important to keep in mind that our core reference genre is community simulation. Games in this genre do a lot with a comparably smaller landmass than what is typical of Open World games. In general, our focus is on depth, variance, and replayability in our maps over massive breadth.

• Aidan

2️⃣ SHARING A HOUSE
Can players share a single house for example as roommates? And on the same vein can players get married and move in together? - Roathgar
Will there be the ability to share a house with my husband? I game with my husband on a regular basis and whenever there is a house involved we usually share the space. I would love to be able to live on my virtual farm in the house with my real husband. :smile: - Tinet

Hi @slim jay & @fathom cosmos ,

This is a style of play we really enjoy as gamers ourselves and know the community is hungry for in Palia. As such, we’re excited to talk about our plans in this area, but want to let things develop a bit further into the process before tipping our hat around how we’ll be attempting to meet your expectations for this style of play.

• Aidan

3️⃣** ACCESSIBILITY**
How accessible will the game be for people who are sensitive to flash, or have hearing problems, as well as for people with reading difficulties? Will you use a dyslexic friendly font? - UchuujinChuui
Can the game be played on adaptive controllers? As some people with disabilities have difficulty playing games - 54 aquasnakes He/Him

Hey there @bronze widget and @dusky crater ,

We want everyone who comes to Palia to be able to play! This involves a lot of work, though, and we definitely won’t be able to get to it all at launch. While there are some known issues that we are committed to getting into our launch scope, there are still areas we need to educate ourselves on, and getting feedback from players on what hinders them enjoying Palia is always a great start. We expect to continually add features to support accessibility, and we expect to continually get feedback from our players on how we are doing and how we can improve in that space.
(AmeliaMarz note: Please be sure to share what’s important to your gameplay needs in #game-suggestions!)

We will be testing the game for visual sensitivity as well as making sure we have individual volume controls to help with audio clarity. There are other features we have planned in regards to both visual and audio difficulties (like colorblindness mode), but depending on the scope some may or may not make it in time for launch.

For controls, we do plan on allowing for free key binding which should allow for integrating with other devices, but full controller support may come at a later time.

TL;DR Accessibility is always part of the conversation, but we will be rolling out bits and pieces as we go.

• EinarHugBestHug

4️⃣ THE RESIDENTS?

Is there a name for the culture of the elf-like residents of Palia? I know that Einar is a Golem, Zeki is a Grimalkin, so I am wondering do the elf-like people call themselves something unique? - WyomingMyst

Hello @weak lake!

The elf-like people are called the Majiri. The name has a special significance in Palian culture, but you’ll have to play to find out what it is!

A few common traits you'll find among the Majiri are the values of tradition, hospitality, and community. They tend to be warm and welcoming, even towards those with customs very different from their own.

• EmbrasAshes

5️⃣ DEV DIARIES/STREAMS?

Will there be a way to see the development process live in the future? To see what exactly the dev team is currently working on while we eagerly wait. Possibly a weekly Twitch livestream of art design and coding of the game. - cocoa

Greetings @tranquil halo !

We’ve very much enjoyed the handful of live events we’ve done in the past, and we even have a few artists on our team who are well-seasoned streamers! We do have plans to kick off Discord Stages and Twitch streams to discuss our development processes, as well as dev diaries when we hit higher population set phases. The live events probably won’t get started for at least another couple months, but! We’re very interested in knowing which elements of the game design people are most interested in, so please let us know what you’d want to hear about most to help us build our schedule!
Art/Design: 🎨
Music/Sound: 🎵
Story/Characters: ✍️
Gameplay: 🎲
UI/UX: 💻
Social/Community: 👪
Something Else: 💡 + comment in #game-suggestions!

• AmeliaMarz

6️⃣** SERVERS**

Server Allocation : I am assuming that your machine learning system is what allocates us to friends and neighbours so we can play together. But, how will we play together when we first log in ? Will there be a way for us to set up a friend network before entering the game to help it get started ? Or have you got another way of dealing with that situation and can tell us that we don’t have to worry about not having our friends with us? - Xrystal

Hi @glass widget!

You don’t have to worry at all about not having your friends with you! 😁

We are still exploring ways of networking before entering the game with your character - at the moment the easiest way is to either become friends (you can search for them even if you’re not in the same area), or join a party together, after which you will have manual controls to ensure playing together.

We want friends to always have the opportunity to play together, and not make it a total headache to do so. This means from start to finish it should be easy for you to find and get together with your friends, whether they are friends you logged in with, or friends you decided to play with later.

• EinarHugBestHug

7️⃣ TRANSPORTATION

Do you plan for easy, accessible transportation methods (e.g: Portals) so visiting different cities/villages is fast and convenient? Or do you envision a slow paced, exploration based adventure where travelling by foot to new destinations is more mysterious and enjoyable? (Or perhaps a mix of both?) - Smokey```

Hi @eternal pewter,

Fundamentally we view this as a balance between immersion and convenience, and believe that the importance of these 2 elements shift as you spend more and more time in a space. We’ve been focused on building a world worthy of exploration, so as you’re discovering each part of the world for the first time, minding all the details can be rewarding and important. As you play longer, you’ll start to engage with new systems that soften the navigation burden over time.

At a high level, being present in the world is something we think is important in Palia so we’re trying to strike a balance that keeps Palia feeling like a tangible, interconnected place without allowing the need for immediate gratification to ever get too sharp. There should be joy in the journey, not just the destination.


- Aidan

8️⃣ MINI-GAMES

Many activities in MMOs involve minigames. What can we expect from Palia in this vein? Is there a unifying design philosophy behind minigames? Will there be a single team, or a single creative director, in charge of minigame development so all the minigames feel like they're part of the same player experience? - adalger

Hi @fresh pendant,

There is definitely a broad set of minigames available in Palia, and at first glance there may seem like there is a large departure between each instance you encounter; but there are some unifying principles:

--Fulfill the Player Fantasy--
What fantasy are players attempting to live out by engaging with this minigame? Minigames should find their inspiration from the real life execution of that player fantasy. If I’m fishing, it should feel like fishing.

--Game over Simulation--
While we find inspiration from real life, and some elements of simulating the real thing are crucial to us achieving our first goal, we prioritize player experience over a meticulous recreation of reality.

--Keep it in the World--
Whenever possible, we avoid bringing up full screen UI elements that take you out of the world of Palia. Both because we’ve designed this world to be a charming place to spend time in, and because we’ve filled it with other players, dynamic living world systems, and a bevy of ways to interact.

--Fun Solo, Better Together--
We are supporting players playing the game ‘solo,’ whether because you’re waiting for friends to come online or it’s your preferred way to play. However, the presence or involvement of other players should be a boon to whatever experience you’re engaging in.

--Accessible Depth, Opt-in Challenge--
With appropriate time and effort, all players should be able to find success when engaging with the skills of their choosing. However, for players seeking to demonstrate skill and mastery we create optional, advanced goals to achieve.

• Aidan

9️⃣ WHEN ALPHA?

When is the Alpha taking place? - everyone

The team learned a lot from the pre-alpha, which includes finding out that we 👏 have 👏 so 👏 much 👏 more 👏 work 👏 to 👏 do.
** We hope to get our Alpha ready by the first half of next year! **
We will keep you informed as things develop and we’re SUPER excited to have more players come into Palia!!!

• ziE

🔟 FUNTIME TEAM QUESTION! FAVORITE FEEL-GOOD MOVIE?

🍿 Big Lebowski or The Fifth Element - maybe not cozy films, but I've watched them both dozens of time, and their familiarity makes me feel at home. Plus I know I've found an instant friend if I overhear someone quoting one of these movies 🤣

• AmeliaMarz

🍿 Ferris Bueller's Day Off. I know every single word of that movie by heart, and becoming Ferris was my single biggest goal as a child. - S6Fancypantsmcgee

🍿 Crazy Stupid Love - LaserDuck

🍿 Thor: Ragnarok is mine, lately. - CacheFanatic

🍿 Elf, but it has to be around the holidays. - wecanbeheroes

🍿 Kubo and the Two Strings - Laurisse

🍿 Moana, but that's partly related to that's the film my wife was working on when we met. - cautomaton

🍿 Can I say the NPR Sesame Street tiny desk show? Moana is my serious movie answer. - ziE

🍿 "Love Actually" - Eirdar

🍿 Cars and When Harry Met Sally.
But more than anything, it'd be the 1982 masterpiece starring Kurt Russell directed by Jon Carpenter: The Thing. - apassey

🍿 It's a dumb, shallow movie (and inappropriate at times so maybe shouldn't bring it up?) but I'm weirdly fond of Interstate 60. - Weaver

🍿 Ghostbusters. It was the only vhs tape at the beach house my family rented while I was growing up. So we watched it 2+ times each trip. - Aidan

🍿 "GunBuster" 🔥 - Leo

🍿 Princess Bride - AnimBaum

🍿 I don't really like to rewatch movies until I have forgotten the plot, so this one's hard, but I think the entertainment that fills that void for me is 90s era Star Trek. It's optimism about the future is nostalgic and uplifting. - EmbrasAshes

🍿 Warm Fuzzies is definitely How to Train Your Dragon, although if I'm in a REALLY bad mood I tend to go for Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle for guaranteed laughs. - EinarHugBestHug

🍿 Some people say the perfect movie doesn't exist. I say they must not have seen the 1996 classic: The Rock. - WizardCrab

🍿 Matilda. A curious but easily misunderstood kid with a superpower. Because who wouldn't want to seek out justice against bullies like Miss Trunchbull? - Lilliann-San San

🍿 Titan A.E. for meeee, I love the story and the soundtrack so mucho! - Eris

🍿 The movies I make sure I always have available to fill time (especially if there's loss of internet) are Zoolander, Fifth Element, and Lucky Number Slevin.
I've been planning to add Zootopia, but haven't committed yet.
I honestly rarely rewatch them, but knowing they're available is a comfort in itself. - Pappy

🍿 Eurovision: The Story of Fire Saga. 👇🏻 Also my favorite gif - Neleimour
https://media.giphy.com/media/J2DLZBIi5iaCWgN0Hq/giphy.gif

That wraps it up for October's edition of our Ask The Team! We hope there were lots of fun tidbits in there for you, and that it sparked even more questions to ask in #851872239435644928, open NOW ➡️ November 5th at 12:00pm PT!
With a local holiday happening for S6 in November, you can look forward to the next batch of curiosities the first week of December

As always, Thank you all for keeping us sharp with your questions, and letting us know what you're most interested in! 💜

[primal karma]

📣 What are we asking?
Questions!

📣 Who are we asking?
The Team!

That's right @everyone, it's time for your monthly segment of Ask The Team! Today, we are tackling such topics as:

The World Outside Town
Crafting + Timestuff =
Resource Management
Managing Communities Big & Small
Romancing More Than One NPC
Roleplay?
Seeeecrets & Myyystery
Pets? Pets!

Questions are now open for you in #851872239435644928 - if this is your first time joining us, welcome welcome! You can read all about how this process works in #851872171403640873. If you have time, please review the questions that came before yours and drop a emoji on any that you like so we know which ones are most important to the greatest amount of members.

Submissions for the December Q&A will close on Friday, December 17th at 12:00pm PT.

✨ Please note:✨
Due to Singularity 6's holiday schedule of December 18th - January 3rd, the next batch of questions will not be posted until the last week of January. Thank you for your patience as the team recharges to come back better than ever in 2022!

Without further adoooo, let's begin!

1️⃣ THE WORLD OUTSIDE TOWN

Can you tell us more about the world outside of the town? How different are the areas from one another such as forest, swamps, or desert areas to explore. And will there be any kind of challenges (difficult enemies or puzzles for example) for players to overcome in these zones? Also are there more villages to discover and possibly build a house there as well? - Dragon

Hi @stiff sail,

Palia is a big world with extremely diverse locales we’re excited to take players to over time. At launch only a small portion of that world will be accessible, but we plan to continuously expand the playable space over time.

We call the major overworld areas outside of the village ‘Adventure Zones’ and their settings will be as varied as you suggest, with distinct flora, fauna, and gameplay possibilities. Where the village is meant to capture the charm and comfort of home, Adventure Zones are meant to capture the joy of exploration and discovery. Each adventure zone will feature a bevy of new content and features unique to the zone for you to uncover and experience.

-Aidan

2️⃣ CRAFTING + TIMESTUFF =

I am really looking forward to the crafting aspect but have seen some games time gate crafting behind limits. Is there going to be some time gating on some of the crafting, whether it is limit per day or some recipes take several hours to complete? Also FF14 has a unique crafting system that requires you to pay attention and use crafting abilities at the right time, and each craft can be different. What level of active work will the crafting have or will it just be hit the craft button and you get the item if you have the resources? - Lazerez

Hi @limpid iron,

We aren't committed to a single approach for crafting in Palia. For example, we’ve developed an involved mini-game with our Cooking skill where each of the steps involved can affect the outcome. We felt this approach most aligned with the fantasy and skill element of cooking in real life. Simultaneously, some other crafting options are as simple as putting resources into a crafter and letting them do their thing. In this case we do have an element of time gating, but it's important to note that we mostly time-gate crafting materials, and not final, usable products (such as décor and tools).This makes it important to think strategically about how you’re going to allocate those resources to meet your evolving needs.

• Bourbon, Senior Game Designer
  

3️⃣ RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

I am thinking of things like replanting trees, making sure our impact on an area isn’t harmful to the flora & fauna living there, or animal rescue & rehabilitation. Follow up question: While palia is a fantasy game, are you considering the educational potential it has, particularly for its non-fantasy elements? - Fay```

Hi @glad pilot,

Our first priority is, of course, making sure the game is delivering a great experience to players. However, there are a variety of themes we take into consideration when trying to find the right direction for a feature. 

One of the themes we think has a lot of synergy with the values of Palia is indeed conservation. This particular theme can be difficult to balance with a game so focused on acquiring resources to make progress in the game, but we’ve found a couple methods already we think help speak to that direction and are always keeping an open mind on opportunities to support it in the future.

A couple elements that come to mind:
     - Players are able to plant new trees, as well as grow a variety of crops
     - Players can progress skills like cooking without leaning on wildlife if they so choose

We are interested in hearing how players feel about these themes and elements, so please share your feedback when you play the game 🙂 

- Aidan & Bourbon
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

4️⃣ MANAGINE COMMUNITIES BIG & SMALL
I'm hoping to create a community both within the game and outside, however many MMOs often require large groups to be "competitive". My personal preference in MMOs is to find a small tight-knit community and enjoy the game like this. However, I am afraid of potentially losing out on content because my community is not big enough. What is being done to prevent smaller communities from being excluded from content, or are there avenues that smaller communities can take so they can still enjoy the game to the fullest? - Mollerz

Hi there @pulsar robin,

We are focused on supporting Neighborhoods large and small! There are definitely challenges with supporting different sized groups through any social progression, so the game is intended to have the goals tuned in such a way that the group size is taken into consideration. This will likely not result in perfect scaling, but will make it possible for any player style to be successful and have fun.

• EinarHugBestHug
  

5️⃣ ROMANCING MORE THAN ONE NPC

How exactly would it work if more than one player wants to romance one of the NPCs? Like how would that look like? Would it interfere with anything? - Minime

This is another one we got a lot of questions about! Shout-out to @tacit saddle, Pichi2214#2331, and more!

Hello @tropic birch!

Yes, you can romance as many of the eligible NPCs as you want. We are still determining exactly how other NPCs acknowledge these relationships. Our goal is to balance realism with the fantasy of getting to explore multiple relationships in a low pressure setting. So in most cases, “dating around” probably won’t be talked about that much, though the player will have a way to signal who they are dating to other NPCs, and those NPCs may have positive or negative responses to the player being involved in particular romances, but we aren’t currently pursuing storylines involving jealousy or “cheating.” We really value giving players the chance to play the way they want to play, and exploring relationships is a big part of that!

-EmbrasAshes

6️⃣ ROLEPLAY?

Do you have any plans to support roleplayers or a roleplaying community as the game seems uniquely tailored towards it? - Khaltarr

Hiya, @vocal cape!

We absolutely believe Palia to be an immersive experience that fans of roleplaying would enjoy! We’re definitely looking to play a role in helping like-minded players find each other, and group up by joining the server or Neighborhood that speaks to their playstyle and interests. We also want to offer ways to find folks spur-of-the-moment, and party with a passerby even if you aren’t part of the same Neighborhood.

• AmeliaMarz

We want to be able to allow players to create or join themed Neighborhoods, as well as allow for group chats that are not tied to a static social structure. For example, a voice chat feature we’re developing will help people socialize in different ways, not just in your neighborhood, but also in curated groups while you play more casually.

As for immersion, we’re excited about the different toys, emotes, character control, and the ability to freely choose your costume; because clothing items will not have gameplay benefits, you don’t have to worry about choosing your outfit around special abilities or bonuses. You can customize your look according to your specific tastes or the needs of the moment!

• Nyvkal & EinarHugBestHug
  

7️⃣ SEEEECRETS & MYYYSTERY

Lost messages from bottles, books that contains “myths” that make you question if they may be real. Riddles of what could lead to a completely different quest from the typical go-bring-take-kill. A treasure to look for, a tale from the bard, a secret switch to a dark passage…
Will there be secrets in Palia? Not necessary into the main story-line, but like completely optional and hidden stuff for the most curious ones. How unexpected will they be? I love the idea of things that makes the game somehow “unpredictable”, at least in terms of how far something can go (like how many fish species are, or animals to hunt, seasonal/random spawning, skills needed to see/find more strange stuff, etc)
Thank you!😊 - pekoteko```
```Hellooo!! Will there be hidden quests to get rare items? Or trips with riddles to a loot? Like a treasure hunt! 😄 -Kakaou```

Hi @craggy hatch!

Yes, there will be secret lore items for the player to discover and many mysteries to be unraveled. Some of these will be smaller atmospheric details, but others take the shape of items you find that unlock secret quests or books you can find to piece together bits of the backstory. We want the world to be full of fun secrets to explore and contemplate for years to come.

- EmbrasAshes
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

8️⃣ PETS? PETS!
Will there be in game mounts and pets? - Skeletoncats

SO MANY PEOPLE ASKED THIS! Special shout-outs to @rare tusk, @limpid shoal#4645, @onyx yacht, @sami#5432, and so many more!

We are a huge fan of pets at Singularity 6, and know this is something players are very excited about as well. Additionally, we think pets are a great fit for Palia and would be surprised if we didn’t support multiple, distinct pet features in the game over time. While we’re not ready to confirm any pet features today, they are definitely on our road map and we’re looking forward to getting to the point where we can share more.

• Aidan
  

That wraps it up for November/December's edition of Ask The Team! We hope there was lots of fun stuff to tantalize the imagination, and that you are ready to ask even more questions in **#851872239435644928, open NOW ➡️ December 17th at 12:00pm PT! **

💡 As a reminder, Singularity 6 will be on holiday from December 18th - January 3rd, 2022, which means the next batch will not be up until the last week of January, 2022. We appreciate your patience as the team gathers their strength to come out strong next year! 🍾 🥂

As always, Thank you all for keeping us sharp with your questions, and letting us know what you're most interested in! 💜

[primal karma]

Over the past few weeks, Singularity 6 has been stretching our legs and getting our ducks in a row, all leading up to this seminal moment:

✨** OUR FIRST 2022 EDITION OF ASK THE TEAM! **✨

We are back and better than ever @everyone, and I hope you are prepared in mind/body/spirit to dive into such topics as:

Alpha: Open or Closed?
Changing Hairstyles
Multiple Aesthetics
Day/Night Cycle
Friends Lists and Invisibility
NFTs
How is S6 Doing?

But wait! Is this your first time joining us? Welcome, welcome! You can read all about how this process works in #851872171403640873. Then hop on over to #851872239435644928 to let us know what you're most curious about!

If you have time, please review the questions that came before yours and drop a emoji on any that you like so we know which ones are most important to the greatest amount of members. This is the main way we prioritize which questions to answer (with some adjustments made for what we're not yet ready to talk about, or we feel we've already answered in another session).

Submissions for the February Q&A will close on Wednesday, February 2nd at 12:00pm PT. Responses will be posted the first week of March.

Without further ado, let's goooooo!

1️⃣ ALPHA: OPEN OR CLOSED?

When the alpha comes - and I'm not asking *how long*, y'all get enough of those questions already - but *when* it comes, will it be closed/invite only again like the pre-alpha, or fully open? - Phi 1.61803

Hi, @glacial quest! The Alpha will be another closed, invite-only test. In fact, we have a few playtests left to go before we open the doors. This is because we are still adding new systems with each phase, and we want to make sure they are working the way we want them to in smaller, controlled groups.

In the meantime, we are building up lots of plans for how to share more gameplay with the community members who aren’t able to participate in this upcoming test, so be sure to keep checking back in to stay "in the know"!

-AmeliaMarz

2️⃣ CHANGING HAIRSTYLES

Are there plans for a barber / stylist? I'd love to be able to change my hairstyle and color in game. - Rosani

Hi @delicate moth,

When you create your character in the beginning, we’ll have a lot of hairstyles and colors you can choose from.

We currently do not have a barber or stylist in the game, but as we flesh out our roster of Villagers we do want to include one for players to go to for hair customization, as we feel hairstyles are a key part of player identity and expression. We're also very open to hearing what hairstyles you want to wear, so please let us know in #game-suggestions!

-EinarHugBestHug

3️⃣ MULTIPLE AESTHETICS

Will there be multiple aesthetics possible to decorate a home in? Like rustic western with stump chairs and rough wood? Gothic victorian with black candles and lace? Hodge podge colorful with multicolored patched furniture?

Hey there!
One of the big themes of the game is “making your home uniquely yours”, so we’re working to build as many different types of furniture as possible.

We also don’t plan on stopping anytime soon, so if there’s not an aesthetic that works for you now, just wait, we’ll be continuing to make more and more styles for you to make your house feel like your home!

Below are two concept examples of early-game styles we are designing. These are just sneak peeks of the simpler ones to give you a sense of how your style can progress, but we would really like to hear what styles you'd like to decorate with in #💬│palia-discussions!

-Eris

4️⃣ DAY/NIGHT CYCLE

Relatedly, how much of a "typical" play session are you hoping to have taken up by "daily" chores like watering crops and maintaining relationships with NPCs vs free time to pursue other goals like gathering crafting materials or exploration?
 - LLSix```

Thanks for the question @lavish oasis,

Our desire is for Palia to be a game that is flexible and allows you to engage in a way that makes sense on your schedule. As such, our day / night phases are set up in such a way that you’ll be able to experience each phase regardless of when you typically play.

There is something just inherently pleasing about having a manageable routine to tend to at the start of each day, and that is certainly present in Palia. However, we know that it’s very easy for this to get to a point in which it dominates your experience with the game, preventing you from pursuing the goals you’re most excited about. Keeping the amount of work in check even as the complexity of your housing plot scales up over time is something we’re keeping a close eye on as we continue to develop and iterate on the game.

-Aidan
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

5️⃣ FRIENDS LISTS & INVISIBILITY

If so: will we be able to turn ourselves **invisible**? And while we are invisible will our characters not display our usernames?

_I like my friends, but sometimes I just want to craft/fish/build in peace and I don't want them to know that I'm online._

_It would also be important for our DMs to appear incognito during rp sessions._
 - Sisquinanamook```

Hi @digital radish,

You will absolutely be able to add friends in our game and send them direct messages! Friendship is very special, and not only includes getting notifications about them coming into and leaving Palia, it will also include the ability to see where they are in the world and ask them to join you.

That being said, everyone needs a little bit of space some time. We are looking into how best to allow players their privacy in a world where you’re always surrounded by others.

-EinarHugBestHug
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

6️⃣ NFTs

Are you guys planning NFTs or anything? Because I don't want anything to do with this if you are. - ⚔ Bleached Ink ⚔

Hi @trim mirage ,

We do not have plans for NFTs. Philosophically, we’re approaching it the same way as any technology: does it provide new opportunities for us to make a better game for our players (and are the costs worth it)? Today we’re confident that NFTs are not right for Palia.

-WizardCrab

7️⃣ HOW IS SINGULARITY 6 DOING?

Jumping off of that, is there anything that the team particularly loved that they saw from the community that either gave them inspiration or passion for the game?
 - Smigiels```

Hey @clever osprey!! 

Thank you for the question! A lot of the time, it’s easy to forget that there are people behind the scenes doing the work that we benefit from, especially these days, so I really appreciate you asking!

As you mentioned the last two years have been pretty tough for most people, Sixers included. That said, we’re all extremely grateful for the team around us, and motivated to build something that our players will love. We’ve grown by leaps and bounds since we first announced our game, and while that’s unlocked a lot of new skills and capabilities, it’s also made things a lot more complicated to scale. These new problems and challenges are actually really exciting because they show us some of the awesome solutions that we can design!

The passion we’ve seen from the community is inspirational beyond words. There is a slack channel in our studio called #palia-community-creations where folks just post links and pictures of the incredible work that folks in our community have done. It’s incredibly humbling, and motivates us to make the game that you’re all hoping for. My personal favorite of late was this image which really captures the heart of game development 🙂 Thank you so much for the question and take care!


-FancyPantsMcGee

*Only the highest quality memes cour*tesy of @weak lake !

🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆

Aaand we're back!

We had so many good questions, everyone! As many of you know, we are devoted to responding to the questions that we are absolutely sure will represent the game you play at launch. You are destined to see even deeper glimpses of gameplay, game systems, character creation, and more in that ever-elusive cavern of the time period .

Want to chat about what you read here today? Head on over to #💬│palia-discussions and let your fellow Palians know what you think! And remember, we are accepting a new batch of questions in #851872239435644928 NOW ➡️ February 2nd at 12:00pm PT.

As always, Thank you all for keeping us sharp and honest with your questions, and for keeping us alert to what you're most interested in! 💜

[primal karma]

Happy Time Zone, @everyone ! Please forgive the double-ping - Discord had some outages yesterday, and not everyone may have been able to enjoy the latest batch of Ask The Team answers as a result.

Head on up to the top of the list by following this link:
https://discordapp.com/channels/809856101326913567/851872208196206602/936006807963439127

[primal karma]

Hello and welcome, gentle Palians, to our second installment of 2022's Ask The Team! 🥳

When last we met, we were just breaking dawn on our announcement of the next big phase of Palia's development: Our Alpha!

We can't wait for what questions we'll be tackling next time, as we continue to evolve and share more peeks with everyone throughout 2022.

Today, we're taking a look at:

Wildlife Visiting Your Home?
Weapons For Tasks/Non PVP
Voice Overs & Sound Production
Goals To Accomplish Together
NPC Birthdays!
Monetization! (Spoiler: There's a blog!)
Will NPCs Remember Our Choices?
How Many People Per Party/Neighborhood?
In-Game Currency

But wait! Is this your first time joining us? Welcome, welcome! You can read all about how this process works in #851872171403640873. Then hop on over to #851872239435644928 to let us know what you're most curious about!

If you have time, please review the questions that came before yours and drop a ⬆️ emoji on any that you like so we know which ones are most important to the greatest amount of members. This is the main way we prioritize which questions to answer (with some adjustments made for what we're not yet ready to talk about, or we feel we've already answered in another session).

Submissions for the March/April Q&A will close on Thursday, March 10th at 12:00pm PT. Responses will be posted the second week of April.

Without further ado, let's answer some questions!
@everyone

1️⃣ WILDLIFE VISITING YOUR HOME?

Will there be wild life visiting our homesteads? Birds nesting in trees, gopher/chapaa holes, deer wandering in, etc. - Vexy

Hey @dull brook,

That’s a great idea and certainly fits in with the spirit of the game we’re trying to build. We’ll definitely keep this in mind as we move forward!

• Aidan

2️⃣ WEAPONS FOR NOT-PVP?

I know Palia is a passive game with no PvP but will there be weapons we can make or use to go hunting or fight monsters/animals?

This leads me to my follow up question tied to combat. Will there be combat in the form of PvE where players go on quests and encounter foes or bosses that yield a reward!

Thanks for your time! - Mintbaby

Hi @lofty coyote,

We want to provide an experience to our community sim audience first, and there are exciting possibilities to go beyond that. It's helpful to remember that while Palia is a community sim MMO, it is not an MMORPG. MMORPG's are typically about slaying foes and getting stronger, but Palians spend the majority of their time engaging in gathering and crafting activities, developing relationships with NPC's, and building up their plot of land.

We have absolutely heard the feedback from players that they want some form of combat gameplay in Palia, and have a few plans in the works. Currently, our Hunting skill is closest to this in feel. (More details ) Players can hunt Palian wildlife with a bow and arrow for their hides, meat, and other valuable materials to craft and cook.

Our first goal is to provide a stellar experience to the community SIM audience, and then anything is possible for expanding the game in the years (and hopefully decades) that we will be adding to the game!

• Bourbon

3️⃣ VOICE OVERS & SOUND PRODUCTION

On the audio side of things, will there be voice over by actors, recorded small sound bytes, or using a sound library?
Thank you!
-Kat

Hello @spiral cliff!

Voice over won't be 1-to-1 with text for scope and flexibility reasons. However, our plan is to support intro + outro lines for the characters, which can change depending on your relationship with the character. The two ways they will change, is if you're friendly, or if you're romantically involved. So, if you level up to a spot where you are in a romance, the voice line intro and outro line will change.

Other than that, we're going to record "Zelda-like" efforts to sync to their animations. This is more just flavor for the character... so that when you see a character gasp, there is an associated sound to go with it.

• knotar
  

4️⃣ GOALS TO ACCOMPLISH TOGETHER

Will there be collective goals for neighborhoods to strive towards, I used to play a game where you could expand your guild village by contributing resources into a massive pile and I really want to see something I can work towards with my friends as a collective effort. - xbenx

Hey @wispy orbit,

Yes, for launch we’re going to have a few goals for the Neighborhood to collaborate on, but expect the breadth and depth to really expand as we continue to develop the game over time. Post launch we have lots of ideas that we want to explore, but we’re going to have to choose one to be the first major effort to bring to players, so we want to make sure it’s an impactful one! 😄

• EinarHugBestHug

5️⃣ NPC BIRTHDAYS!

Do NPCs have birthdays? It would be great to celebrate them together! - Q-koney

Hello @true dawn!

NPCs do have birthdays, as well as unique Palian astrological signs. We are exploring different ways of having those birthdays surfaced and celebrated by the community, and hope to share more details with you soon!

• EmbrasAshes

6️⃣ MONETIZATION!

If there are planned in-game cash shops, would it be cosmetic only or would it affect in-game progress?
 - stonewippen```

Hi @sand thorn,

We've been asked about our monetization plans a lot since we announced Palia back in June of 2021! We answered all of these questions and more in a blog just a few weeks ago. You can check it out here: https://bit.ly/wizcrab

We will also be posting a transcript of the Q&A we had with our Head of Business and Insights that answers many frequently asked questions that came after the blog went live. Stay tuned for that in the next few weeks! (Our transcription software wasn't as great at capturing grammar as we had hoped so it's taking a bit longer, huehuehue).

It will be posted in this same channel as a Special Edition of Ask The Team 🙂 

- AmeliaMarz

7️⃣ WILL NPC's REMEMBER OUR CHOICES?

will there be consequences for our actions? like choices and events that we can't undo and permanently change our gameplay? - nomadicstardust

Hi @rocky plank,

NPCs will remember your past choices and respond accordingly. How far we will go in making these types of choices affect the main storyline is TBD.

We do want to do choice based content for our main storyline, but these may be group decisions as opposed to individual choices. Currently, individual choices mostly impact how NPCs view you, and those create some small branches and additional options in friendship and romance content.

• EmbrasAshes

8️⃣ HOW MANY PEOPLE PER PARTY/NEIGHBORHOOD?

I am trying to determine how many friends I can get into Palia so we can enjoy it together. Thank you for your great efforts :) -Dim

Hi @glossy skiff,

There are multiple social grouping systems in Palia that are sized to suit their activities. For example, our party size is 4 because the activities we are planning for them have limited slots. However, your Neighborhood and each server can hold many more players simultaneously (we’re still trying to lock down the launch number and expect it to increase from early Alpha playtest numbers).

• EinarHugBestHug

9️⃣ GAME CURRENCY?

Hey @remote lynx,

Currently, gold is the primary fungible currency in Palia, but there are several other currencies you’ll interact with for specialty stores and I’m sure we’ll introduce new ones in the future as it makes sense for the content being released.

• Aidan

🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢 🐢

We did it! Thank you all for hanging tight a few extra days, we had tons of of fun answering this batch.

A lot has happened this past month, and we're very curious to see what questions emerge with all these new developments and announcements! We are accepting a new batch of questions in #851872239435644928 NOW ➡️ March 10th at 12:00pm PT.

Want to chat about what you read here today? Head on over to #💬│palia-discussions and let your fellow Palians know what you think.

As ever, thank you for guiding The Steamship Palia in the direction of our collective dreams with your excellent inquiries. ⛴️ Until next time, gentle Palians! 💜

[primal karma]

Happy time zone, @everyone !

Singularity 6 has had many adventures since we last Asked The Team, including closing our first Alpha. We hope to share more about that experience with you in the very near future, so don't touch that dial!

In the meantime, we hope you enjoy this very special edition of April's Ask The Team. Be sure to read all the way to the end if you are interested in being a part of building a kind community in Palia! ✨

Who is This @dire badger I Keep Hearing So Much About?
How Important is Exploration?
How Much of an Accomplishment is Owning A Home?
Are There Plans for a Wishlist Mechanic?
Can We Just Be Friends With NPCs?
Can Young Children Play Palia?
Will Palia Be Full of Aesthetic Details?
Can We Romance Any Gender?
🌟 How Does S6 Design for Kind Communities?

gasp! Is that a new friend I see on our server? Welcome, and thank you for joining us!
Because this is your first time, here's a bit about Ask The Team, the monthly column where developers of Palia answer your questions. You can read all about how this process works in #851872171403640873. Then hop on over to #851872239435644928 to let us know what you're most curious about!

If you have time, please review the questions that came before yours and drop a ⬆️ emoji on any that you like, so we know which ones are most important to the greatest amount of members. This is the main way we prioritize which questions to answer (with some adjustments made for what we're not yet ready to talk about, or we feel we've already answered in another session).

Submissions for May's Ask The Team will close on Friday, April 15th at 12:00pm PT. Responses will be posted the second week of May.

And now, gentle Palians, let's get to answerin'!

1️⃣ WHO IS THIS ASHERELLE I KEEP HEARING SO MUCH ABOUT?

- Everyone```

Hey Everyone!

Asherelle is the new Community Manager at Palia, joining me to support all of you as our membership grows! You learn a bit more about her from her intro over in [#🌟│hidden-meet-the-sixers](/guild/809856101326913567/channel/850043981039403088/),  but I can tell you that she is super funny, creative, and has her finger right on the pulse of the community. You'll be seeing a lot more of her as we ramp up our plans, kick off events, and bring Palia right to your door! If you see her on the server, be sure to give her a warm "hello"! ![ashurawaves](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/865630949235490836.webp?size=128 "ashurawaves") ![tavernmilk](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/850928508812787742.webp?size=128 "tavernmilk") 

- AmeliaMarz
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

2️⃣ HOW IMPORTANT IS EXPLORATION?

How important will exploration be to filling out the game? Will we come across ruins or wizard towers, unique fairy circles in the forest, or a snug little cave by a lake? Perhaps unique crafting recipes in hidden, hard-to-reach locations?

Seeing as intense combat is not the main focus of the game (understandably!) you mentioned that there will probably be hunting. Would this activity be more similar to Stardew Valley's mines of killing cutesie little monsters for rare materials, as opposed to being entirely focused on the XP grind you'd see in WoW?
- tehJace

Hi @oblique peak!

Exploration will be an exciting part of your early days with Palia, and an experience we hope to continuously refresh as we add new zones to the game over time. So yes, you can expect to find lots of secrets, locked doors, and hard to reach locations in the game. However, I think it’s important to temper expectations in this area since our world is not as large as a typical MMORPG or Open World game. As such, sometimes you’ll have to wait for the next zone drop to get that exploration hit in the game again.

In general, the game is very resource focused in driving your core loop, but there is XP to be earned as well.

• Aidan
  

3️⃣ HOW MUCH OF AN ACCOMPLISHMENT IS OWNING A HOME?

- Arco.

Great questions @main swallow!

I think we can answer all of that with:
We want your home to eventually be an extension of who you would like to be in Palia. Your first home should be an accomplishment for the work you’ve put in at that point in the game, but it shouldn’t be the last time you’re feeling fulfilled with your home choices. We also want you to be fulfilled with the chase, and the journey of pursuing homes you love. We’d like for you to obtain new house styles and furniture pieces that keep you creating and changing and evolving for 1000s of hours, as long as we keep making items and features that excite you!

• Eris
  

4️⃣ ARE THERE PLANS FOR A WISHLIST MECHANIC?

- Sorrieah```

Hey @wispy orbit,

We definitely want to give opportunities for gifting, but it’s a question of when, not if. When we add gifting, there are a lot of extra things we need to set up to protect players and ourselves from fraud - and I don’t yet know when we’ll be able to do that. There’s just so much to do so to set expectations it could be a while. As for wishlists, I can’t promise one way or another about that particular mechanic but we’ll definitely put a lot of thought into how to make a great gifting experience!

- WizardCrab
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

5️⃣ CAN WE JUST BE FRIENDS WITH NPCs?

- JesterRat```

Hi there @frosty rune, 

Romances will be triggered by giving romantic gifts after you have reached the appropriate friendship level. Additionally, you can max out friendship with any NPC without starting a romance track with them. We want romance to always feel opt in and to support close non-romantic friendships as a valid track.

- EmbrasAshes
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

6️⃣ CAN YOUNG CHILDREN PLAY PALIA?

But I need to know, will there be any plans to add family friendly filters? So say I could lock my kids accounts down so they cannot speak to others or others speak to them outside preset lines?

Some other games have done similar in the past, but either are now gone, or on their last legs (gamigo style).
- MrWiggly```

Hi @worthy crow,

We are currently rating Palia as 13+. Not because of content we think wouldn't be appropriate for someone under 13 years old, but because of the themes we will be exploring in our story. A useful comparison would be the films of Hayao Miyazaki. We do have high standards for what we permit in our chat, and are committed to making our players feel safe.

- AmeliaMarz
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

7️⃣ WILL PALIA BE FULL OF AESTHETIC DETAILS?

- onthefence```

Hi @twilit lagoon,

How can I say YES in more words than one?? Our art and our audio team really want players to be able to sit in any area of the map and feel grounded in the ambience surrounding the player. There are times when the player will get lost, good lost, just experiencing the little details that we like to put there just for the players to find. Building a believable world for players to fall in love with is a goal for us.

- Eris

Great question! I can say that the team and I are also super excited about pretty natural effects, and we have already created amazing effects in the world like fireflies, time of day lighting, sunsets and sunrises, mysterious spirits and much more that I cannot wait to show. But this is only the beginning. The team still has a lot planned for adding more whimsy into the world. The night sky is something we have a lot of plans for, constellations will give us hints and secrets about the lore of Palia. Excited to share more in the future.

- Jeremy Fenske
![1Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/708037058551087185.webp?size=128 "1Blank")

8️⃣ CAN WE ROMANCE ANY GENDER?

- Cythereal

Hi @smoky yew,

Players are able to romance any NPC they want regardless of gender.

• EmbrasAshes
  

----- 🌟 AND NOW, FOR A SPECIAL FAQ 🌟 -----

-A longtime FAQ```

**WhoaNonstop *(Machine Learning  ~~Propagandist~~ Lead)*:**
First, we believe that Palia's focus on cooperative instead of competitive play will help mitigate many behavioral issues common across other popular games. Due to the zero-sum nature of most games, competition can bring out the worst in people. We are hopeful that our design for Palia will give us a slight advantage. However, we recognize that no matter how cozy we make Palia, we will eventually encounter players who make the game less enjoyable for others. There is a general asymmetry around player behavior. In most games, the main focus is on reprimanding inappropriate actions, but we want to place as much energy into uplifting players for treating others with kindness. We believe that providing a way for players to celebrate each other for their admirable acts is another tool for developing healthy communities in Palia.

**EinarHugBestHug *(Lead Meta-Systems Designer)*:**
To speak more from the design side of the problem, WhoaNonstop is absolutely correct in some of the ways in which our genre choice feeds into the idea of “designing for coziness and kindness.” We will, over time, also be adding design mechanics to the game intended to give players agency over the quality of experience they would like to have, as we recognize the tension between safety and the ease of making real and meaningful connections, and there isn’t an easy answer to achieving both.

It is crucial that we recognize the positive and negative impact that each player can have on others, no matter the intentions. But there are so many types of people in the world that we cannot possibly think we will be able to cover all perspectives on our own brainpower and experiences alone, so it’s essential that we approach this space with an open mind and an open heart to listen to what our players tell us. Raising our own collective awareness does take time and energy, though, and so we’d like to invite all Palians to be a part of building Palia's cozy community!

*Photo Credit: Arco. Work in Progress image from Alpha test.*

WhoaNonstop:

We need your help building up a corpus of kind sentences or phrases that you have heard people say, either to someone else or directly to you. Do not feel limited to interactions in video games - feel free to add examples from your own life; school, work, home - anything goes! Also, we will gladly accept sentences in any language.

Examples might include:

• You’re doing a great job! (Encouragement)
• You are more fun than anyone or anything I know, including bubble wrap. (Kindness)
• I’m sorry you’re having a rough time. (Compassion)

Help one of our Palia bots learn by sharing kind sentences and phrases by click the link below to share a compliment, write a short, thoughtful note, or simply help us have a better day!

                    ⬇️ 

➡️ https://bit.ly/3v0TP39 ⬅️
⬆️

Stay tuned, because we will be sharing a lot more on how Palia will be encouraging kind communities in the future.

Thank you all, as always, for your excellent questions! It's very helpful for the team to know what matters most to our community. Please keep in mind that there are some questions we are not yet ready to answer, and this is for a few reasons:

• We are committed to providing meaningful answers that we are confident we will deliver in Palia.
• There is a related feature in development, but are not yet ready to share exactly how it works.
• We may have already answered! Please browse the past #❓│old-team-answers-alpha - you may just find what you're looking for

We are accepting a new batch of questions in submit-your-question NOW ➡️ April 15th at 12:00pm PT.

Want to chat about what you read here today? Head on over to #💬│palia-discussions and let your fellow Palians know what you think! Hope to see you there~

[dire badger]

Why, hello, everyone! It's time for our next installment of Ask the Team!~ 🎉

We've got nine sets of questions and answered ready to share to you today, featuring the following Sixers:

- WizardCrab, Head of Business
- Aidan, Game Director
- Gutterfoot, Senior Game Designer
- AmeliaMarz, Community Lead
- Bourbon, Senior Designer
- Asherelle, Community Manager
- EinarHugBestHug, Lead Meta Systems Designer```
Is this your first time joining us? No worries! ![chuuagrees](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/850847889155948564.webp?size=128 "chuuagrees") 
> 1. Head on over to [#851872239435644928](/guild/809856101326913567/channel/851872239435644928/) when it opens and feel free to ask away any burning questions you have relating to Palia.
> 
> 2. Scroll through and upvote any other questions you'd like to see answered.
> 
> 3. We'll close the channel for the next round and sort by the most upvotes.
> 
> Disclaimer: Not all questions, even if highly upvoted, will be answered. Likely due to it already being an answered question in the past, or perhaps a topic we're not ready to cover just yet. Thanks for understanding!

**Submissions for the next round will be accepted until
 ⏰ **`May 19th at 12:00 PM PT`. ⏰ 
Responses will be posted...the second week of June! ![blobeinar](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/860688139474567188.webp?size=128 "blobeinar") 

Without further ado, let's get into it~

1️⃣ From @limpid rune

How much will you be able to customize your character without buying clothes and such for real life currency, will there be very few clothes you can use without buying them, or will there still be some and just more if you buy them?
Hey Sfinxen,

The first thing I want to emphasize is that many of the character customization options are actually not monetized at all. You’ll have the full range of what we offer with things like skin color, face, body type, etc. You’ll even be able to change these choices after the initial character creation screen without the need to spend real money (though there could be other requirements, like in-game currency or a cooldown period). We want you to always be able to represent yourself in the way you want to.

As for clothing, our goal is for you to feel like you are getting a full game experience even without spending money. We’re aiming to have a good number and variety of options for players who can’t or choose not to spend. But selling outfits is also the way we’ll financially support the game, so I do want to properly set expectations that we’ll be constantly adding new, paid outfits. As we continue to support Palia for years to come, the paid outfit catalog will eventually outgrow the free one significantly—that’s the reality expected with this type of model. However, I do truly believe that most players will be happy with the options we provide for both sides.

• WizardCrab
  

2️⃣ From @arctic lantern

So, I was thinking about how many Alpha/Betas we will have before the launch, and if the team is hiding some kind of big content for the final build that they don't want to talk about in public for now (this second is more a Yes or No thing if the team can't give hints or something). I understand that the project is still new and you guys have a lot to do yet, but I saw some games extend the tests for too long and at the end they didn't have anything really new for the actual launch, so people lost interest kinda quickly since they played most of the content. I didn't get invited to any test yet, but after looking at the arts and videos you guys usually post, I got really excited to play this game in the future.
Hi IcyFarlen,

We plan on releasing new content and features regularly throughout the testing phases and after launch. Some releases will obviously be larger than others, but we expect to have something new on a monthly basis post launch. So while we aren’t really planning some grand reveal, there will definitely be many exciting things in store with each playtest, launch, and beyond.

• Aidan
  

3️⃣ From @valid gazelle

What sorts of in-game events are planned for the game? For example: Will we have Christmas, or a Christmas-analog, around wintertime? Or, will it all be primarily user-driven events?
Worry not, Gezelle! While we do want some user-driven events, we are definitely going to also have both seasonal and non-seasonal events. We will be drawing inspiration from holidays all across our own world while also coming up with ones that are uniquely Palian! Winter holidays are, in my humble opinion, some of the coziest so I’m personally very excited to bring that holiday coziness to Palia when the snow starts to fall.

• Gutterfoot
  

4️⃣ From @twilit mortar#0001

What kind of music will we be expecting in the game such as in the village, wilderness/ruins and would there be any way to get a sample? And on the topic of music, will there be a way for players to create music and play instruments similar to what a few other games offer such as Mabinogi and FFXIV? (I wish to ask a different question instead of this one.)
Hi Zangried,

The music and sounds of Palia is one of our playtesters’ favorite experiences from the latest Alpha, so I think you’ll be very happy with what you hear!

Our composer for Palia, Steffen Schmidt, is currently on a well-deserved vacation after completing all the recording sessions for Palia’s music in Vienna! Your question couldn’t have come at a better time 🙂

We can share a bit more when he returns, but we have been providing a few updates during his sessions. Here are a few peeks at the work Steffen was doing with all of the amazingly talented musicians:

• Harp Recording: https://twitter.com/composerschmidt/status/1516139164684627968

• Palia's Kilima Village Daytime Theme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofjt9f-6el8&t=1s

• AmeliaMarz

Regarding playable instruments in Palia, we’re really excited about the possibility as we think it meshes well with the vibe and experience we’re trying to create. While we’re aware this is a frequent request from our community, we don’t have anything to announce in this regard at the time.

• Aidan
  

5️⃣ From @prime orchid

What are your current plans on the topic of hindering actions that will harm the in-game economy? My biggest example is the newly released MMO Lost Ark and their huge problem with bots trying to sell in-game currency with real money, leading to the inflation of prices of common goods. It is a problem that haunts every game in this genre and just as hard to solve. And from what I've understood about Palia is that the game is strongly driven by its economy, which would mean that an attack like this can be devastating.
Hi Draglom,

This is certainly something we’ve been thinking about from the very early stages of Palia’s development. One decision we’ve made in this regard is to have some restrictions and limitations on the transfer of goods between players. This choice is absolutely a trade-off that adds some inconvenience, but does so in hopes of making the in-game economy continuously work for a broader group of players while mitigating the impact of botters.

• Aidan
  

6️⃣ From @craggy hatch

Helloo !! Will fishing (like other professions) be influenced by seasons, events? Are some kinds of fish only fishable in certain places? Or with very specific hooks to find? Thank you for your reply :smile:
In Palia, a number of things can influence the fish you find. Of course, the location where you are fishing matters, but the type of bait you use, the weather, and the time of day can also influence what fish are available.

• Bourbon

And as a bonus, here’s some concept art of fish you can find in Palia!

• Asherelle
  

7️⃣ From @fallow grove

> By extension, will you craft these furnishing yourself with gathered materials?```
There will be plenty of ways you can acquire furniture in Palia, and there will be lots of furniture, period. For launch, you’ll acquire many of them through the Furniture Making skill. The more you craft, the more experience you earn, which then unlocks more learnable recipes. As an alternative, these pieces can also be purchased as they appear in the furniture store (on a rotation).

Beyond that, we’re also making a number of pieces and sets available in unique ways apart from crafting. For example, unlocking an item when you complete a certain questline. This will unravel as you explore more of the world of Palia, and can be acquired as complete items, rather than from crafting off recipes.

- Bourbon
![Blank](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/974094264797638677.webp?size=128 "Blank")

8️⃣ From @tulip gulch

Other MMOs have things such as raids and dungeons to pull people together to work towards a common goal. What kind of common goals are in Palia that would bring people together? Will there also be some form of grouping like guilds or clans in other games?
We are definitely going to have social structures like guilds or clans! In tune with the rest of our game, we want to focus the atmosphere of our guild structures on being close knit and cozy; collaborative rather than competitive.

Back in March, we spoke to group goals a little bit (see link below), and we are continuing to explore options that we think will make the best experience for players. The high level goal is still for players to be able to feel like they are contributing to something greater than themselves, but at their own pace and comfort to begin with.

• EinarHugBestHug

Link to previously related answer:
#❓│old-team-answers-alpha message

9️⃣ From @main swallow

What is something you’ve learned from recently failed games that you will try to avoid in Palia?
Hi Arco,

We’re always looking to our peers for inspiration and cheering them on as gamers ourselves. MMOs are hard. Launching a new MMO is hard. There are so many things that have to go right in order for us to even have the chance to meet player expectations. That’s why we’re using our pre-launch test phases to directly inform when we’re ready to take the big leap.

Here are some things we’ve picked up over the years that we’re always keeping in mind:

1. The importance of bringing something unique to the table with our game
2. What contributes to a strong and stable game economy
3. How are we going to support the game post launch with regular, meaningful content updates
4. What is necessary to have a reliable backend infrastructure to keep the whole thing running smoothly behind the scenes.

We’ll be paying a lot of attention to these areas and more as we approach launch and beyond.

• Aidan
  

(Late @everyone ping as I missed it in the initial message!)

And there it is! Thank you all for waiting for this next round of Ask the Team~

As a reminder, **submissions for the next round will be accepted until
⏰ **May 19th at 12:00 PM PT. ⏰
and responses will be shared within the 2nd week of June.

If you have any comments or feedback of the things shared today, head on over to #💬│palia-discussions to discuss!

Until next time~

[dire badger]

Hi, @everyone! We’re back with the latest round of ✨ Ask the Team! ✨

This time, we have nine more sets of questions and answers from our Sixers, featuring…

- Aidan, Game Director
- Gutterfoot, Senior Game Designer
- Bourbon, Senior Designer
- Asherelle, Community Manager```

Is this your first time joining us? No problem!

> 1. Head on over to [#851872239435644928](/guild/809856101326913567/channel/851872239435644928/), and feel free to ask away any burning questions you have relating to Palia. ![firechapaa](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/855506369225424956.webp?size=128 "firechapaa") 
> 2. Scroll through and upvote any other questions you'd like to see answered. ![paliathis](https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/864294103716855858.webp?size=128 "paliathis") 
> 3. We'll close the channel for the next round and sort by the most upvotes. 📈 

**Disclaimers:**

Not all questions, even if highly upvoted, will be answered. This is likely due to it already being an answered question in the past, or perhaps a topic we're not ready to cover just yet.

Also, please note some selected questions have had words, spelling, or phrases edited from the original submission for better readability.

Thanks for understanding!

Submissions for the next round will be accepted until
 ⏰ `June 23rd at 12:00 PM PT.` ⏰ 
Responses will be posted by the last week of July~

Now let’s get into it!

1️⃣ From @minor onyx

**About social interaction in the game, are there any plans to add some character poses, attitudes, facial expressions, etc., to enhance the social experience for players?

And with a way to quickly use it, to have a dynamic way of expressing ourselves?**

**EinarHugBestHug: **Yes! We’ve got an Emote Wheel in the works. The intention is to give players the ability to use another means of communication aside from needing to pull up the chat window. Right now, there’s a fixed set of emotes you can use, but we plan on expanding this so you can customize the wheel in the future. And even with the wheel, the center option can be immediately used when bound to a hotkey for fast access. Facial expressions are currently tied to these emotes, but there’s lots of room for us to explore moving forward.

2️⃣ From luxfer0s#4165

Would it be possible to implement a photo mode? Also, could there be something along the lines of an album/encyclopedia to record which bugs/fish we've caught?

**EinarHugBestHug: **We will have a photography mode! It’s pretty basic right now, but it definitely gets rid of all the pesky UI so you can take some beautiful landscape photos, or some cheeky selfies! And while we do have a guidebook in the game right now that tracks collection progress, it’s in a pretty early stage. We’re hard at work in fleshing it out and making sure it’ll be a great resource for players to use.

**Ashe: **In fact, here are some incredible screenshots our Alpha testers took using the mode! Credits to Testers PopTop, codafex10, Almoria, and SnoreyBear.

3️⃣ **From @round flint **

What motivated you to make Palia? Was it a lack of similar MMOs?

**Aidan: **Hi Shiveria,

Palia has definitely been a labor of love for me. I’ve always been a big fan of community sim games, going back to Harvest Moon on the SNES. Bringing that kind of game into an immersive fantasy world at the massively multiplayer scale really spoke to me as a player.

Additionally, I’ve personally been really impacted by the amazing online communities I’ve gotten to be a part of through the various MMOs I’ve played deeply over the years. Building a game that can foster that kind of community experience around a different kind of core game experience was really the spark leading to the overall company vision.

4️⃣** From @valid gazelle**

Bag Space: What is S6's mindset when it comes to bag space and inventory management? I inevitably run around with full bags, regardless of which game I'm playing, to the point where I often do a quest/pick something up/etc. and get an error that I can't collect it.

Aidan: Hi Gezelle,

This is definitely a thoughtful question. When it comes to inventory and bag space, we knew there needed to be some limitations in place. We’ve seen cases where unlimited inventory can actually influence one’s playstyle in a direction we didn’t want to go, and made the decision to have it be a fixed amount. While you start off with a row available, you can unlock more bag space with expansions, and we believe that the final amount is at a good spot at the moment.

That being said, we also wanted to provide some conveniences. In Palia, your storage space is actually shared and accessible across all chests, and you’re able to craft directly from storage without needing to take items out into your bag space.

5️⃣ From @hollow umbra

Good afternoon, how many professions (such as mining and manufacturing) will be available in the game?

Aidan: Hi JackLike,

Our current expectation is that there will be 8 skills available at launch. While that number will inevitably expand post launch, right now we’re mostly focused on making sure our initial skills are really hitting the mark. Our playtests thus far have been really helpful in validating and iterating on each of them.

**Ashe: **The eight skills are as follows: Foraging, Bug Catching, Mining, Fishing, Cooking, Furniture Making, Gardening, and Hunting. You can check them out on our recently revamped website at https://palia.com/. Which skill are you most excited about? Let me know in #💬│palia-discussions!

6️⃣ **From @edgy raptor **

Will there be different tiers of housing? Say Large, Medium, and Small? And will there be any limitations on how much furniture you can add?

**Gutterfoot: **Housing is a massively important feature in Palia and we want to bring loads of customization options throughout development. You’ll be able to build small rooms to large rooms, if you have the right blueprints and materials, of course! With different housing styles, you can completely change the look and feel of your house as well. We do have a limit in place for furniture in your housing plot, but fear not - it’s a very high number!

**Ashe: **And as a testament to that, here’s a screenshot from Tester TardisKnight. Look at all those placeable bottles! 🍾

7️⃣ From @broken matrix

I read about hunting and fishing features. Will it be possible to play Palia in a non-violent way or do you have to hunt to progress in the game?

Aidan: Hi Lotta,

One of our core values for Palia is allowing the player to “play the way they want to play,” and yes, this particular desire has been expressed by quite a few in the community and on the development team. Our economy is already set up in a way where you can acquire the items themselves without needing to directly engage in the skill or activity. But to take things a step further, we’re also looking into adding in item variants so you can use options not sourced from creatures.

8️⃣ **From @lethal steeple **

What are the plans for bug catching? Will there be anything like collections or terrariums to display them in?

Bourbon: This is a good question! Broadly speaking, we want all of the gathering skills in Palia to be useful for more than just earning gold. For bug catching, we really like the expressive potential of displaying your bug collection in something like a terrarium, and are actively exploring ideas there alongside other possibilities.

9️⃣ And finally, a bonus question from @valid gazelle!

Who among the Sixer team has a beach vacation planned?

**Ashe: **We appreciate the fun question being thrown in! Here’s a few selected responses we got from Sixers:

“I plan to spend the next 2 months working from an island that is surrounded by beaches. 🙂”

“I've never actually considered (as an adult) taking a summer vacation before.”

“I just came back recently from Greece where I got to visit some beaches.🙂 One of them (Elafonissi Beach) has pink sand!”

“I'm spending a week with my family on Hilton Head Island soon! Looking forward to enjoying the beach, but I'm also excited to go putt-putt golfing and eat some amazing barbeque "

“I'll be going with my family and a few friends to Cape May, NJ in September.”

“A group of friends and I take an annual trip to Catalina every August, where we rent cabanas on a private beach and enjoy drinks, food, and music!”

“Does Horizon Forbidden West count? If so, I'm going to explore the beach around San Francisco!”

**Ashe: **What plans do you have for the summer? Let us know in chat!🌞

That wraps up this round of Ask the Team! Thank you all for waiting patiently~

As a reminder, submissions for the next round will be accepted in #851872239435644928 until
⏰ June 23rd at 12:00 PM PT ⏰
You can expect responses by the last week of July!

If you have any comments or feedback, I’ll be sticking around #💬│palia-discussions for a bit.

See you there! 👋