Palworld's CEO Firmly Rejects Acquisition Rumors

Last summer, Palworld developer Pocketpair entered into a significant agreement with Sony Music Entertainment to expand the Palworld universe beyond gaming. This deal focused on producing merchandise, music, and other products related to Palworld. However, many fans misinterpreted this partnership as an indication that Pocketpair was on the verge of being acquired, especially following earlier rumors that the company was in discussions with Microsoft about a potential buyout.

Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe later clarified that the acquisition rumors were unfounded, yet the speculation ignited discussions within the gaming community. The conversation gained further momentum as Microsoft continued its spree of acquiring AA studios and reportedly showed interest in Japanese developers, while Sony responded with acquisitions of its own.

The question on many fans' minds remains: will Pocketpair ever be acquired? According to John 'Bucky' Buckley, Pocketpair's communications director and publishing manager, the likelihood of such an event is extremely low. During our conversation at the Game Developers Conference last month, Buckley stated, "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's stance was unequivocal. He 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 addition to discussing the acquisition rumors, Buckley and I also touched on the potential of Palworld coming to the Nintendo Switch 2, the studio's response to the game being labeled as "Pokemon with guns," and other topics. You can delve into our comprehensive interview [ttpp]here[ttpp].