Fix Palworld You’re Currently Prevented From Playing Online Multiplayer Games Error

Palworld, aka ‘Pokemon with guns,’ has been quickly named by several players recently due to its many similarities with Pokémon. Even though the developer Pocketpair has mentioned that the game did pass all the legal checks before release, it looks like The Pokémon Company is planning to investigate the claims. Keeping this aside, if you’re encountering the Palworld, you’re currently prevented from playing online multiplayer games on both PC and Xbox, so you’re not alone.

The chances are high that you have been playing Palworld for a while, and the specific error often occurs on the screen saying, “Sorry, you’re currently prevented from playing online multiplayer games.” This particular error appears whenever Palworld players try to join a friend’s multiplayer lobby. As mentioned, it’s appearing on the Xbox console and Windows platforms. Even though there is no official statement available yet by Pocketpair regarding the same issue, we can already see plenty of online multiplayer connectivity errors preventing many players from getting into the server.

We should also mention that whenever you encounter this error notice while trying to access the multiplayer sessions with friends, you won’t be able to load previous game saves for some unexpected reasons. However, you can create new worlds in Palworld even after experiencing this error, which is a bit odd to be true. This usually indicates a pending game update or network connectivity issue. In addition, players can also face this issue due to a server outage problem.

Fix Palworld You’re Currently Prevented From Playing Online Multiplayer Games Error

Now, if you’re also one of the victims to encounter this error notice then make sure to follow this troubleshooting guide. Luckily, we’ve shared with you some workarounds that might come in handy to fix it. So, without wasting any more time, let’s jump into it.

1. Retry Connecting to the Lobby Multiple Times

We’ll suggest our readers retry connecting the multiplayer lobby with their friends in Palworld a couple of times to avoid any kind of temporary server glitches. Sometimes the server queue might get cleared after doing this step over and over again. Multiple players have found this trick helpful and you should also try it for several attempts.

2. Restart the Gaming Device

You might also need to reboot your gaming device manually by following the steps below. This method will help in fixing temporary system glitches or cache data issues whatsoever. Sometimes playing the game for longer sessions or pending system reboot for a while might trouble you a lot. Restarting the device will allow the system to perform better and also avoid program-running conflicts.

For PC:

• Open the Start menu > Click on the Power menu.
• Click on Restart > Wait for the system to reboot.
• Once done, launch the Palworld game.

For Xbox Console:

• Press the Xbox button on your controller to open the guide.
• Select Profile & System > Choose Settings.
• Go to General > Select Power Options.
• Select Restart Now > Run the game.

3. Run Palworld as an Administrator

Another thing you can try is to run the Palworld game application on your computer to allow the system admin access manually. Well, this is a one-time process so you don’t have to do this again & again. Allowing the system admin permission to the game application will help in running the program smoothly enough.

• Open the File Explorer > Head over to the game installed directory.
• Right-click on the Palworld.exe app on your PC.
• Click on Properties > Go to the Compatibility tab.

• Enable the Run this program as an administrator checkbox.
• Click on Apply and select OK to save changes.
• Once done, ensure to run the game again.

4. Check for Palworld Updates

You should also check for the game updates manually irrespective of which device or platform you’re using. An outdated game patch version can cause multiple issues with the server connectivity errors.

For Xbox Console:

• Press the Xbox button on the controller to open the guide.
• Select My Games & Apps > Go to See All.
• Select Manage > Choose Updates.
• Now, check for the Palworld update.
• If available, you can manually download the update.

For Steam:

• Open the Steam client > Go to Library.
• Right-click on the Palworld game.
• Click on Properties > Click on Updates.
• Go to Automatic Updates.
• Select Only update this game when I launch it.
• Launch the Palworld game to check for the issue.

For Xbox App:

• Open the Xbox App for PC.
• Go to My Library > Click on the Palworld game.
• Now, click on the More options (…) button.
• Click on Manage > Select Files.
• Next, select Check for updates.
• Finally, run the game to check for the error.

5. Scan and Repair the Game Files

The chances are high that somehow your installed game files on the PC can also get corrupted or missing. If you’re also experiencing the same issue then make sure to follow the steps below to repair the game files.

For Xbox App:

• Open the Xbox App for Windows.
• Go to My Library > Select the Palworld game.
• Select the More options (…) button.
• Click on Manage > Select Files.
• Now, click on Verify and Repair.
• Wait for it to complete > Restart the computer.

For Steam:

• Open the Steam client > Go to Library.
• Right-click on the Palworld game.
• Go to Properties > Click on Installed Files from the left side.
• Now, click on Verify integrity of game files.
• Wait for the process to complete.
• Once done, reboot the PC.

6. Check Your Internet Connection

It’s also worth recommending to check your internet connection whether it’s having any issues or not. A slow or unstable internet connection can trouble connecting to the multiplayer lobby in Palworld. Make sure to use a different internet connection or contact your service provider to check for the issue. You might also need to power cycle your networking device to ensure everything is working fine at your end.

7. Add an Exclusion of Palworld on Antivirus

Sometimes adding an exclusion of Palworld on antivirus can help in resolving multiple issues with the aggressive blocking. This method will allow the game to run properly and ongoing server connections without any preventions from the antivirus.

• Press the Win+I keys to open Settings.
• Click on Privacy & Security > Click on Windows Security.
• Click on Virus & Threat Protection.
• Now, click on Manage Ransomware Protection.
• Turn ON the Controlled Folder Access toggle.
• If prompted by UAC, click on Yes to proceed.
• Click on Allow an app through controlled folder access.
• If prompted by UAC, click on Yes.
• Next, click on Add an allowed app.
• Go to the installed game directory.
• Select the Palworld.exe application.
• Click on Open to add it.
• Finally, restart the PC to apply changes.

8. Check the Server Status of Palworld

It seems that the Palworld servers are having some issues with technical glitches or outages due to the exceeding number of active players in the multiplayer queue. The chances are high that the Palworld game servers are facing downtime and preventing players from joining the multiplayer sessions whatsoever. It’s also recommended to visit the official Palworld Server Status webpage to cross-check any kind of potential server downtimes at the moment you’re getting the specific you’re currently prevented from playing online multiplayer games error.

At the time of writing this article, we can see that there is a major outage with Epic Online Service Failure for Palworld. Therefore, you should keep waiting for a couple of hours or even more to get it fixed. Currently, Pocketpair and Epic Games working on this issue which may take some time. Meanwhile, you should also follow the official @Palworld_EN Twitter account to get server outage and patch update reports.

9. Turn On Network Discovery

Another thing you can do is enable the network discovery feature on your computer by following the steps below. Well, ‘Network Discovery’ is a built-in feature in Windows that allows the devices to communicate better with the connected network for sharing files too. So, you can try enabling the network discovery option manually on the PC by following the steps below.

• First, close and exit the game.
• Open the Start menu > Search for Task Manager and open it.
• Go to the Processes tab > Click to select the Palworld.exe task.
• Then click on End Task.
• Do the same steps for the Steam or Xbox App that you’re using.
• Press the Win+R keys to open Run.
• Type services.msc and hit Enter to open Services.
• Double-click on UPnP Device Host from the list.
• Click on the Stop button.
• Do the same steps for the SSDP Discovery service.
• Once done, open the Start menu.
• Search and open the Control Panel.
• Go to Network and Internet.
• Select Network and Sharing Centre.
• Next, click on Change advanced sharing settings.
• Go to the Network Discovery section.
• Turn On the Network Discovery option.
• Save the changes and restart the PC.
• Restart the networking device too.

10. Clear the Steam Download Cache

The chances are high that somehow your Steam download cache is having some issues with installing game updates. So, being unable to install the game updates might conflict with the server connectivity if any bug or stability issue is present there.

• Open the Steam client.
• Click on the Steam tab on the top left side.
• Now, click on Settings > Click on the Download tab.

• Click on the Clear Download Cache button.
• Then sign back into your Steam account.
• Finally, relaunch the Palworld game.

11. Clear the Game Cache Data (Xbox)

It’s also suggested to clear the game cache data on your Xbox console by following the steps below which will allow the system to run the game properly and fix the server connectivity issues.

• Press the Xbox button on your controller to open the guide.
• Go to Settings > Select Devices and Connections.
• Select the Blu-Ray option.
• Choose the Persistent Storage option.
• Select Clear > Once done, reboot the console.

12. Contact Palworld Support

As a last resort, you should contact the support team regarding the issue to allow the game developers or Steam Support. This will allow them to investigate the issue further and assist you precisely. If this is a server-side or in-game issue, developers will push a patch fix for it. So, make sure to Contact Steam Support or Contact Pocketpair to submit the support ticket and wait for the response.

That’s it, guys. We assume this guide was helpful to you. For additional queries, you can comment below.