Palworld Boss Teases Potential Release on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch

Since releasing in January, Palworld has been a massive success story on Xbox Game Pass and Steam. Those interested in playing it on other platforms have been out of luck so far, but it seems the game will be expanding its potential audience. In an interview with Bloomberg, Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe revealed that the developer is in discussions with companies about bringing Palworld to other platforms. No details were revealed just yet, but presumably those platforms include PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch (or more likely its successor). We don't know how far along those discussions are, so those interested in playing the game will have to settle for the existing versions for now. 

While the odds of Palworld ending up on other platforms now sound a lot more likely, Pocketpair went on to note that it's open to an acquisition, or other partnerships. An acquisition could have a major impact on discussions about ports, depending on who buys it. Apparently, Pocketpair has not discussed an acquisition with Microsoft at this time. 

What is Palworld?

Palworld is a survival game that has frequently been described as "Pokemon with guns." The game features both single-player gameplay, as well as online multiplayer. Since releasing earlier this year, Palworld has sold more than 25 million copies across Steam and Xbox. It's hard to say if the game would prove as successful elsewhere, but bringing Palworld to PS5 and Switch could greatly increase the player base. 

Despite the game's initial success, Palworld's popularity has tapered off a bit, with the number of concurrent players dropping on Steam since the initial hype. Palworld is still drawing larger crowds than a lot of games released since, but one of the biggest problems is that the game doesn't have a steady stream of new content to keep players coming back. Pocketpair has attributed that to the team's small size, but there aren't plans to grow right now. 

"We are and will remain a small studio," Mizobe tells Bloomberg. "I want to make multiple small games. Big-budget triple-A games are not for us."

Nintendo Switch 2

It's possible Palworld could end up on the current Nintendo Switch hardware, but it seems a lot more likely it would come to the company's next console. Nothing has been announced yet, but it's widely assumed that the tentatively titled "Nintendo Switch 2" will end up releasing later this year, or in early 2025. The new system is expected to be significantly more powerful than Nintendo Switch, which has been on the market now for seven years. Depending on how far talks have gotten with Nintendo, we could even see Palworld releasing on the new system sometime during its launch window! 

Do you want to see Palworld on PS5 or Nintendo Switch? Do you think the studio will end up being acquired by another company? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!