Last summer, Palworld developer Pocketpair signed a deal with Sony Music Entertainment to expand the Palworld universe beyond gaming through merchandise, music, and other products. This business agreement sparked rumors among fans that an acquisition might be imminent, especially following earlier rumors that Pocketpair was in talks with Microsoft about a potential buyout.

Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe later debunked the acquisition rumors, but the discussion around a possible acquisition persisted. This was fueled by Microsoft's aggressive acquisition of AA studios and its interest in Japanese developers, as well as Sony's counter-acquisitions in the gaming industry.

The question remains: Will Pocketpair ever be acquired? According to John 'Bucky' Buckley, Pocketpair's communications director and publishing manager, the likelihood is extremely low. At the Game Developers Conference last month, Buckley emphasized that CEO Takuro Mizobe values independence and autonomy:

“Our CEO would never allow it,” he said. “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 conviction is clear. He continued:

“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 discussed the potential for Palworld to come to the Nintendo Switch 2, the studio's response to the game being labeled “Pokemon with guns,” and other topics in our interview. You can read the full discussion here.