Palworld Crossplay Dedicated Server: Steam, Xbox, PS5, Mac

Since version 0.5.0 the Palworld dedicated server is a single crossplay build: Steam, Xbox, PS5, Mac and PC Game Pass players can share one world. That sentence usually gets read as "set up a server and send everyone the address" — which is true for Steam and Mac players and not true for Xbox and PS5: their game has no place to type a server address at all.

This covers the extra things a crossplay server needs. Setting the server up in the first place is the complete setup guide; none of that is repeated here.

Who can play with whom

Before 0.5.0, Steam and Xbox were two entirely separate networks and PS5 was a third. Since then there is one server build and no restrictions between platforms:

Those three "only"s are the whole article. The console and Microsoft Store versions have no address:port field on the title screen; the in-game community server browser is the only way in. So the problem a crossplay server has to solve isn't "can they connect" — it's "how do they find you."

Two things to change on the server

CrossplayPlatforms

This option in that one long PalWorldSettings.ini line decides which platforms may connect, and the default is all of them:

CrossplayPlatforms=(Steam,Xbox,PS5,Mac)

Normally you leave it alone. Two things to know: if it is missing or omits a platform, players on that platform are refused — with no explanation on their end; and the older AllowConnectPlatform option from early guides is gone and does nothing on current builds.

The -publiclobby launch argument

This is what decides whether console players can find you. Started with this flag, the server registers itself with the official public lobby — the data source behind the in-game community server list (official launch-argument reference):

./PalServer.sh -useperfthreads -NoAsyncLoadingThread -UseMultithreadForDS -publiclobby

Without it the server doesn't exist in the list, and Xbox and PS5 players have no way in whatsoever. Steam players are unaffected and keep direct-connecting. So "everyone on Steam gets in, nobody on console can find it" is almost always this one missing flag.

Registering with the public lobby means anyone can find you. Set a ServerPassword — a server in the public lobby isn't private; the password is what makes it private.

Which ports to open

One more required port than a Steam-only server:

A Steam-only server can skip 27015 and have everyone direct-connect. A crossplay server can't. On a cloud machine, allow the ports in both the security group and the OS firewall — the details are in connection troubleshooting.

If the server sits behind home broadband, there's one more thing to confirm: whether you have a public IP at all. Most residential connections no longer get a public IPv4, and in that case port forwarding doesn't help — the public lobby registers an address nobody can reach. The fix is either a cloud machine with a public IP, or a tunnel / virtual LAN tool to relay traffic — and the latter usually isn't an option for console players, who can't install those tools.

How console players join

Tell them three things:

1. Open the community servers browser from the title screen — not the invite-code route
2. Search by the exact server name. The list only shows the first 200 results, so scrolling won't find you; set ServerName to something distinctive and easy to type, not the default
3. Enter the ServerPassword

A newly started server takes several minutes, sometimes ten or more, to appear in the list. That's normal latency, not a misconfiguration.

Common questions

My Xbox or PS5 friends can't find the server. What do I check?

Three things in order: is -publiclobby in the launch arguments; is 27015/UDP allowed in both the security group and the OS firewall; are PublicIP and PublicPort set to the server's real public address and port. If all three are right, wait ten minutes for the list to refresh and have them search by the exact name.

Do console updates lagging behind Steam break crossplay?

Yes, temporarily. Console patches go through platform certification and often land a day or two after Steam. If the server has already updated, console players on the old build see a version mismatch and can't join — and vice versa. Expect that window around every release.

Can Steam players still direct connect?

Yes. Crossplay only adds a route for console players; Steam and Mac players keep using Join Multiplayer Game (Dedicated Server) with address:8211 exactly as before.

Does a crossplay server need a bigger machine?

No. Load depends on player count and world size, not on what device people play on. Size it from the table in server requirements.

On hosting this is a checkbox

A self-hosted crossplay server has a longer list to remember than a Steam-only one: an extra launch flag, an extra required port, two public-address fields that have to be right, and a password that must be set.

On a dedicated Palworld server from KeepWorlds that list is one checkbox under Startup options in the Console: Crossplay (public lobby). Tick it and save; the server restarts and registers with the public lobby, and friends on Xbox / PC Game Pass find it by name. The ports are already open, and Steam friends keep joining with the address on the page. The server password sits on the same page — who gets it is up to you.