Last summer, Palworld developer Pocketpair entered into an exciting collaboration with Sony Music Entertainment, aiming to broaden the Palworld universe beyond gaming. This partnership involves creating merchandise, music, and various other products related to Palworld. Despite being a straightforward business deal, some fans mistakenly interpreted this as an indication of an upcoming acquisition, fueled by earlier rumors of Pocketpair being in discussions with Microsoft for a buyout.
Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe later dispelled these acquisition rumors, confirming they were untrue at the time. However, the speculation persisted, particularly as Microsoft has been actively acquiring numerous AA studios and reportedly showing interest in Japanese developers, while Sony has also been making strategic acquisitions.
The burning question remains: will Pocketpair ever be acquired? The decision ultimately lies with Mizobe. At the recent Game Developers Conference, I had the opportunity to discuss this with Pocketpair's communications director and publishing manager, John 'Bucky' Buckley. He expressed strong skepticism about any potential acquisition, stating emphatically, “Our CEO would never allow it. He'd never allow it. He would never, never allow it. He likes doing his own thing and he likes being his own boss. He doesn't like people telling him what to do.”
Buckley further elaborated, "So I would be shocked. Maybe when he's old, and he might just sell it off for money. And that would be sad, but in my lifetime, I probably won't see it. No, it'll be interesting to see where the two paths go. We, Pocketpair, are obviously only involved in where the game path is going. Palworld as an IP, we are involved, but it’s very much in the hands of Aniplex and Sony Music who are steering that ship right now. We are just offering our advice and thoughts as they take that."
In our comprehensive interview, Buckley and I also delved into topics such as the possibility of Palworld making its way to the Nintendo Switch 2, the studio's response to the game being dubbed "Pokemon with guns," and much more. You can access the full discussion right here.
