Voidling Bound Delivers the Experience I Hoped for in Palworld

Palworld didn’t quite deliver the “Pokémon with guns” experience I was hoping for. The marketing and trailers didn’t mislead me; I just had different expectations for a survival-crafting twist on Pokémon that Pocketpair ultimately provided—and that’s on me.

Still, it left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. I knew I wanted something like Palworld, but I wasn’t sure what that was. It turns out I didn’t want Pokémon with guns; I wanted Pokémon that are guns, and that’s where Voidling Bound comes in, filling the gap Palworld left behind.

Interestingly, despite sharing some creature-collecting elements, the two games are quite different. Voidling Bound is more like Spore with guns, mixed with a dash of Sonic Adventure’s Chao Garden minigame.

So, what exactly is Voidling Bound? It’s a third-person shooter and creature collector that launched on Steam earlier this month, on June 9. Developed by a small team of nine from Quebec, many of whom are former Skylanders developers from Vicarious Visions and Toys for Bob, it brings a fresh take to the genre.

Describing Voidling Bound as a “creature collector” is both an exaggeration and an understatement, as there are only nine “Voidlings” to collect. However, these nine creatures come with a plethora of mutations, abilities, perks, and customizable appearances, allowing for a mix-and-match approach through breeding and evolution trees.

This is where the comparisons to Palworld end. The unique twist in Voidling Bound is that you don’t send your little companions into battle with commands; instead, you take direct control of the Voidlings during combat. This aspect impressed me the most. While nine creatures may not seem like a lot, each Voidling feels distinct, and the combat is punchy and satisfying. The shooting mechanics are gratifying in a way that some recent high-budget AAA third-person shooters have failed to achieve.

Voidling Bound also feels refreshingly straightforward to play. I often skip tutorials and prompts, but I never felt lost. Navigating quest objectives and figuring out how to breed my Voidlings to create the ultimate overpowered chicken-shaped minigun was a breeze. That said, the combat isn’t without its challenges; I found myself getting defeated frequently on the highest difficulty.

However, it’s not all perfect. There are four planets to explore, each with a few main and side missions, and I completed them all in about 20 hours. There’s a rogue-lite endgame mode called Abyss, but it felt a bit too light on features to keep my interest. It’s a shame because I still want to experiment with splicing my Voidlings, but there’s little incentive to do so after finishing the missions.

That said, 20 hours of enjoyable gameplay for just over $20 is a solid deal in my book. I hope Hatchery Games continues to expand the game in the coming months because if they add more depth to Abyss mode, I’d be eager to dive back into Voidling Bound. Ultimately, I’m just glad to see developers pushing the boundaries of the creature collector genre, as it’s ripe for further experimentation.