Palworld CEO Rejects Acquisition: 'It's Not Happening'

Last summer, Palworld developer Pocketpair entered into a strategic partnership with Sony Music Entertainment aimed at expanding the Palworld brand through merchandise, music, and other related products. While this collaboration was purely a business move to grow the Palworld universe beyond gaming, some fans misinterpreted it as a potential acquisition in the works. The speculation was further fueled by prior rumors earlier that year suggesting Pocketpair was in discussions with Microsoft about being acquired.

At the time, those acquisition rumors turned out to be unfounded, as Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe later clarified. However, they certainly sparked widespread discussion within the gaming community. Since then, chatter around a possible acquisition of Pocketpair has persisted—especially given Microsoft’s aggressive acquisition strategy across the AA gaming sector in recent years and its rumored outreach to Japanese studios. Sony, too, has been actively making acquisitions of its own.

So, is an acquisition of Pocketpair actually in the cards? Ultimately, the decision lies with Mizobe. When I asked John ‘Bucky’ Buckley, Pocketpair’s communications director and publishing manager, about it during an interview at the Game Developers Conference last month, he was quite clear—and adamant—about the likelihood of such a scenario unfolding.

“Our CEO would never allow it,” he said firmly. “He'd never allow it. He likes maintaining creative control and being his own boss. He doesn't like external interference or having people dictate what he should do.”

That level of certainty left little room for doubt. Buckley went on to elaborate:

“I would be genuinely shocked. Maybe someday, if he retires and decides to sell the company for financial reasons—that would be unfortunate, but even then, I don’t think I’d see it happen in my lifetime. Looking ahead, it’ll be interesting to observe how things unfold. Our focus at Pocketpair remains firmly on game development. As for the broader Palworld IP, while we’re involved, it’s largely being managed by Aniplex and Sony Music. We contribute ideas and insights, but they’re steering the overall direction.”

Buckley and I also discussed the potential for Palworld to launch on the Nintendo Switch 2, the studio's perspective on the game being described as “Pokémon with guns,” and more. You can read the full interview right here.