Palworld Fans' Dreams Are Coming True

Pretty much everyone agrees at this point that "Palworld" is an excellent and addictive survival game, and most fans are thrilled to have it on PlayStation 5. As the game lands on new platforms, some people have been wondering what it would be like if you could take "Palworld" with you wherever you go. That's a question that Pocketpair is getting ready to answer. On October 2, the company announced that it has signed a deal with games publisher Krafton to create a mobile version of "Palworld." The game is definitely in good hands: Krafton is the publisher behind "PUBG," and PUBG Studios will apparently be the primary developer for the new version of "Palworld," allowing Pocketpair to focus on the main title. It seems like a sign that "Palworld" is in no danger of slowing down.

"Palworld" keeps delivering one surprise after another, and we're willing to bet that no one had this partnership with PUBG Studios on their 2024 bingo card. Right now details about the new game are virtually nonexistent. All that we know is that Krafton "plans to faithfully reinterpret and implement the original's main fun elements to fit the mobile environment." but that hasn't stopped fans from getting excited about the possibilities. That said, the elephant in the room is whether or not Nintendo will get in the way of whatever plans there are for mobile "Palworld."

People were expecting Nintendo or The Pokémon Company to sue "Palworld" for months, and it finally happened in September, when Nintendo filed a suit alleging that Pocketpair had violated some of the company's patents. Some fans think Nintendo's lawsuit was timed to distract from ongoing Switch 2 leaks, but regardless of the reason, it's already having real effects. Not long after Nintendo filed its lawsuit, "Palworld" made its surprise debut on PlayStation 5, but the PS5 version wasn't released in Japan. Even outside of Japan, fans are worried about buying "Palworld" on PS5, fearing the game could disappear based on the outcome of Nintendo's lawsuit.

When Nintendo's lawsuit was first made public, Pocketpair promised fans, "We will continue improving Palworld and strive to create a game that our fans can be proud of." With the PS5 "Palworld" release and a mobile version in the works, Pocketpair is already making good on that commitment. Fans may have some concerns, but it seems like the "Palworld" developers aren't afraid.

Regarding the Lawsuit

Yesterday, a lawsuit was filed against our company for patent infringement.

We have received notice of this lawsuit and will begin the appropriate legal proceedings and investigations into the claims of patent infringement.

At this moment, we are unaware...

— Palworld (@Palworld_EN) September 19, 2024

As you might imagine, fans were pretty surprised to learn that we're already getting a "Palworld" mobile spinoff, especially with the Nintendo lawsuit looming. Some fans think that the mobile game might actually be part of Pocketpair's master legal strategy.

So Sony has the media rights, Krafton has the mobile rights and Xbox helped with the ID@Xbox Game Preview... Pocketpair is playing this very clever for when Nintendo starts the battle for real.

— Feenixfire90 Gaming (@Feenixfire90G) October 2, 2024

Other fans are viewing the new mobile game as a way for "Palworld" to take its Nintendo antagonism to the next level. For instance, what if the new game is a "Pokémon Go" knockoff? Let's be honest, "Palworld" didn't try to hide how much it was inspired by "Pokémon," but based on how much Pocketpair actually innovated on the "Pokémon" formula, we'd be surprised to see them take the mobile game in that direction.

You walk around catching pals out in the real world. If you ever run out of stuff to catch pals with, hit up a pal stop

— Derek (@Dynamite_Derek) October 2, 2024

Plenty of fans are less concerned about Nintendo and more intrigued by what this new version of "Palworld" will actually look like. PUBG Studios has a solid reputation for making engaging mobile games, but "Palworld" is a different beast from the work the studio's done in the past. Some gamers are worried that if PUBG Studios tries to recreate the full "Palworld" experience for mobile devices, then the game might just be impossible to run on most phones. Of course, PUBG Studios and Pocketpair could decide to take the new game in a thousand different directions — maybe a battle royale to bring the "Pokémon with guns" vibes full circle? — so we'll just have to wait and see what the companies reveal next.