Palworld is getting a mobile game as Pocketpair signs deal with PUBG's publisher, and yes, that Nintendo lawsuit is still very much a thing
Krafton will be krafting a mobile version of the game Nintendo and The Pokemon Company aren't kool with.
You know Palworld? That game that recently got a PS5 port and definitely had nothing else of note happen involving it? Well, developer Pocketpair has signed a licensing agreement with Krafton for a mobile version of it to be made.
In case you've been living under a rock with your pals, news of this deal arrives not long after Nintendo and The Pokemon Company filed a lawsuit against Pocketpair over Palworld, alleging that the game "infringes multiple patent rights". There's been a lot of speculation as to how it might play out, but as of right now, all we can do is wait and see.
Anyway, in the interim, Pocketpair is still chugging along with its plans for Palworld, having now announced that it's signed a licensing agreement with Krafton that'll see a mobile version of the game get made.
As translated by Gematsu, the release says Krafton’s PUBG Studios will develop this Palworld mobile game, which will reimagine and adapt the core gameplay elements of the title to fit a mobile release.
PUBG Studios - in case the name didn't give it away - developed PUBG and its mobile ports, so has experience being successful in that realm of development. No further details - such as a release window - have been shared yet.
While as I mentioned earlier, Palworld did recently get a PS5 port, it dropped pretty much everywhere but in Japan, where the Nintendo lawsuit was filed. "The release date in Japan has not yet been decided," Palworld's official Japanese Twitter account stated regarding this, "We apologize to everyone in Japan who was looking forward to it, but all of our staff will do our best to deliver it to PS5 users as soon as possible, so we hope you will wait for a little longer."
Pocketpair said in its response immediately following the lawsuit's filing that it would "begin the appropriate legal proceedings and investigations into the claims of patent infringement". It added: "It is truly unfortunate that we will be forced to allocate significant time to matters unrelated to game development due to this lawsuit. However, we will do our utmost for our fans, and to ensure that indie game developers are not hindered or discouraged from pursuing their creative ideas."