Palworld Communications Director Says Nintendo Switch 2 Version '100% Worth Considering' if the Console Is 'Beefy Enough'

When Pocketpair's monster capturing endurance escapade Palworld launched, galore radical compared it to Pokemon, specificallycalling it "Pokemon with guns." It's not Pocketpair's favourite comparison, according to communications manager John 'Bucky' Buckley, but the thought of collecting a pursuing of adorable monsters has nevertheless prompted a fig of radical to inquire if Palworld would ever marque it to Pokemon's level of choice, the Nintendo Switch.

Unfortunately, according to Buckley, that's not successful the cards, mostly owed to method reasons. "If we could marque the crippled enactment connected the Switch, we would, but Palworld is simply a beefy game."

I spoke to Buckley astatine the Game Developers Conference successful San Francisco past week pursuing his talk, 'Community Management Summit: A Palworld Roller Coaster: Surviving the Drop.' During our chat, I besides asked Buckley astir the anticipation of a Nintendo Switch 2 release. He said that Pocketpair is interested, but hasn't gotten a accidental to spot if a larboard is adjacent imaginable yet.

"We haven't seen those specs yet," helium said. "Like everyone else, we're waiting. I'm walking astir GDC hoping idiosyncratic volition archer maine them, but everyone I've spoken to says they haven't adjacent seen them.

"If it's beefy enough, it's 100% worthy considering. We did a batch of optimization for Steam Deck, which we were truly blessed with. Still enactment to do, but we're truly blessed with however it turned out. So we would similar to get it connected much handhelds if possible."

Pocketpair remains entangled successful a suit from Nintendo implicit alleged patent infringement against Pokemon's ball-throwing mechanics, starring immoderate to speculate that to beryllium the existent crushed Palworld hadn't made it to Switch.

But the suit isn't truly what's stopping the workplace from releasing games connected Nintendo's platforms, arsenic we saw backmost successful January. Buckley addressed the suit precise concisely successful his GDC talk, saying that it caught the squad by surprise, and that the squad had done galore ineligible checks successful the lead-up to merchandise successful bid to forestall that nonstop thing. "Pretty overmuch everyone astatine Pocketpair is simply a immense instrumentality [of Pokemon]," Buckley said successful the talk, "so it was a precise depressing day, everyone heads down and walking successful the rain."

The question is, would Nintendo let a crippled it's taken specified contented with connected its next-gen console?

We'll beryllium posting our afloat interrogation with Buckley astatine GDC aboriginal this week, truthful support checking backmost for much astir Palworld. In the meantime, it's a large clip to revisit Palworld if you've stepped away, arsenic the crippled conscionable got cross-platform play successful a caller update past week.

Rebekah Valentine is simply a elder newsman for IGN. You tin find her posting connected BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a communicative tip? Send it to [email protected].