Palworld CEO Rejects Acquisition Rumors: 'Never Going to Happen'

Last summer, Palworld developer Pocketpair signed a deal with Sony Music Entertainment to expand the Palworld universe beyond gaming into merchandise, music, and other products. This business agreement sparked speculation among fans, who mistakenly believed it signaled an impending acquisition, especially following rumors earlier in the year that Pocketpair was in talks with Microsoft about a potential buyout.

Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe later debunked the acquisition rumors, but the conversation around a potential buyout persisted. This was fueled by Microsoft's aggressive acquisition strategy in the gaming industry and their interest in Japanese developers, as well as Sony's counter-moves in the acquisition space.

As for whether Pocketpair will ever be acquired, the decision rests with Mizobe. At the Game Developers Conference last month, communications director and publishing manager John ‘Bucky’ Buckley expressed strong skepticism about the prospect of Pocketpair being acquired. He emphasized Mizobe’s independent spirit, saying, "Our CEO would never allow it. He'd 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 comments were unequivocal, and he added, "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."

Buckley and I also spoke about the possibility of Palworld coming to the Nintendo Switch 2, the studio’s reaction to the game being called “Pokemon with guns”, and much more in our interview. You can read the full discussion right here.