Pocketpair, the developer behind the hit survival game Palworld, has expressed a desire to release the game on the Nintendo Switch 2, despite an ongoing legal dispute with Nintendo and The Pokémon Company. Pocketpair CEO Takuru Mizobe stated in an interview that the studio would welcome conversations about bringing Palworld to the platform if the opportunity arises.
Mizobe praised the Switch 2 as an "amazing platform," particularly noting its significance within Japan and the broader Japanese games industry. He indicated that Pocketpair would be eager to explore bringing Palworld to the Switch platform in some capacity.
This interest comes while Nintendo and The Pokémon Company are engaged in litigation with Pocketpair in Japan. The lawsuit centers on patents related to how Pokémon games function. While IP experts have suggested Nintendo might only receive a modest payout of around $30,000 if successful, the legal proceedings are still active. The complaint was initially filed in September 2024 and later amended in November 2025 after Palworld made changes to mechanics deemed too similar to Pokémon. Notably, an early access patch removed the ability to throw a sphere to summon a creature to a specific location, a change that altered some tactical options for players. The game now features direct spawning of creatures when a sphere is used.
A preliminary view of the case is scheduled for November 9. Regardless of the legal outcome, Pocketpair appears open to future collaborations with Nintendo on its hardware.
Palworld achieved its 1.0 release in July, drawing nearly one million concurrent players on Steam. The game has since amassed over 40 million players across all platforms since its early access launch.