Palworld Director: Nintendo Switch 2 Version Considered If Console Is Powerful Enough

When Pocketpair's monster capturing survival adventure game, Palworld, launched, it quickly drew comparisons to Pokemon, often being dubbed "Pokemon with guns." While Pocketpair's communications director, John 'Bucky' Buckley, isn't fond of the comparison, the allure of collecting adorable monsters has led many to wonder if Palworld might ever make its way to the Nintendo Switch. Unfortunately, Buckley clarified that a Switch release is unlikely due to technical constraints, stating, "If we could make the game work on the Switch, we would, but Palworld is a beefy game."

During the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco, following his talk titled 'Community Management Summit: A Palworld Roller Coaster: Surviving the Drop,' Buckley shared more insights. When asked about the possibility of a release on the rumored Nintendo Switch 2, Buckley expressed interest but noted that the studio hasn't seen the new console's specifications yet. "Like everyone else, we're waiting. I'm walking around GDC hoping someone will tell me them, but everyone I've spoken to says they haven't even seen them," he explained. He added that if the new Switch is powerful enough, it would be worth considering, especially given their successful optimizations for the Steam Deck.

Despite ongoing legal battles with Nintendo over alleged patent infringement related to Pokemon's ball-throwing mechanics, Buckley emphasized that the lawsuit isn't the primary barrier to releasing Palworld on Nintendo's platforms. In his GDC talk, he briefly touched on the lawsuit, mentioning it was unexpected despite the team's thorough legal checks before the game's release. "Pretty much everyone at Pocketpair is a huge fan [of Pokemon]," Buckley noted, "so it was a very depressing day, everyone heads down and walking in the rain."

The big question remains: would Nintendo allow a game it's taken issue with on its next-generation console? While the answer is uncertain, Buckley's comments suggest that technical feasibility is the more immediate concern for Pocketpair. Keep an eye out for our full interview with Buckley from GDC, which will be posted later this week. In the meantime, it's an excellent opportunity to revisit Palworld, especially with the recent addition of cross-platform play in its latest update.