Voidling Bound: The Palworld Dream I Always Wanted

Palworld never quite delivered the “Pokémon with guns” adventure I had envisioned. The marketing and trailers were honest, but the game settled into a survival‑crafting spin on the franchise that left me craving something entirely different.

That longing left a hollow feeling—an itch I hadn’t yet identified. I wasn’t looking for Pokémon wielding firearms; I wanted Pokémon that were themselves weapons, and Voidling Bound finally satisfies that craving.

Beyond the shared creature‑collecting premise, the two titles could not be more distinct. Voidling Bound feels more like a Spore‑style shooter infused with a touch of Sonic Adventure’s Chao Garden, rather than a Pokémon clone.

Before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s define what Voidling Bound actually is.

This third‑person shooter and creature collector debuted on Steam on June 9, marking its arrival earlier this month.

The game was developed and published by Hatchery Games, a compact nine‑person studio from Quebec largely composed of former Skylanders developers from Vicarious Visions and Toys for Bob.

Calling Voidling Bound a “creature collector” is both an overstatement and an understatement, because the game actually offers only nine distinct Voidlings. Yet each of those nine can be transformed into dozens of variations through mutations, abilities, perks, and visual customisations, all unlocked via intricate breeding and evolution trees that echo the classic Spore mechanics.

The real twist that sets Voidling Bound apart from its Palworld‑style peers is that you command the Voidlings directly in battle, rather than simply assigning them orders. This hands‑on approach is what impressed me most: although nine creatures might seem limited, each one feels genuinely distinct in playstyle, and the combat is punchy, satisfying, and even more gratifying than some recent high‑budget AAA third‑person shooters.

Beyond its combat, Voidling Bound shines in its accessibility. Even as a player who often skips tutorials, I never felt lost. Progressing through level objectives and mastering the breeding mechanics to craft the ultimate chicken‑shaped minigun was intuitive and enjoyable, providing a relaxed yet intellectually stimulating experience. That said, the game isn’t devoid of challenge; I frequently found myself outmatched on the hardest setting.

However, the experience isn’t without its shortcomings. The four planets each host a handful of main missions and a few side quests, allowing me to complete the entire campaign in roughly twenty hours. While the rogue‑lite endgame mode, Abyss, offers additional content, it feels underdeveloped and fails to sustain my interest. It’s disappointing, especially since I still have a strong desire to experiment with new Voidling combinations, but there’s little incentive to do so once the main story is finished.

For under $20, players can enjoy roughly twenty hours of engaging, consistently entertaining gameplay—a solid value proposition in today’s market.

Hatchery Games has laid a promising foundation, and I’m eager to see the studio build upon it in the months ahead. A modest enhancement to Abyss mode could easily entice me to dive deeper into Voidling Bound, adding fresh layers of strategy and replayability.

Ultimately, I’m thrilled to witness developers pushing the boundaries of the creature‑collector genre, a mechanic that is ripe for bold experimentation and creative evolution.