Hannan Mundia 
With Palworld’s immense success, PlayStation and Nintendo fans are left wondering whether the game will make its way to the PS5, Nintendo Switch, or any other platforms.
So-called “Pokemon knockoff” Palworld entered paid early access on January 19 and over 2 million players purchased the game in its first 24 hours. Pocketpair’s survival collect-a-thon rapidly climbed Steam’s player count charts and wound up as high as the number-two spot. Now fans are wondering if the game will launch on the Nintendo Switch or PS5.
The developers have spoken on the matter, however, giving fans an idea of what’s to come. Here’s everything there is to know about Palworld’s platforms, how to start playing it, and where it might wind up in the future.
When will Palworld be released on PS5?
There is currently no release date for a PS5 version of Palworld. In fact, the developer hasn’t firmly stated that it intends to bring Palworld to any other platforms, whether PlayStation or Nintendo Switch. Fans shouldn’t write off the idea of playing Palworld on other consoles, though.
When asked about a PlayStation release, Palworld developer Pocketpair stated in a Discord FAQ that the studio doesn’t “have plans for this at the moment but will consider it during development.” If Palworld launches on PlayStation consoles, the fact that it’s on Xbox One suggests that both the PS4 and PS5 could see a release.
The overwhelming success of Palworld’s launch may have hastened any plans the company may have had for ports. Fans have seen games like Vampire Survivors and Among Us become overnight hits and see the scale of their operations increase to match this. Pocketpair will undoubtedly want to capitalize on the game’s sudden popularity and is in a better position to do so after selling 2 million units. Whether it can do so quickly and whether there might be other contractual red tape to cut through is unclear.
Does Palworld have a Nintendo Switch release date?
Palworld is not currently scheduled to come out on Nintendo Switch and the developer has not indicated that it will ever do so.
While there is an expressed openness to a PS5 release for Palworld, a Nintendo Switch release for Palworld. The notorious lack of power in the Nintendo Switch console makes it an open question as to whether the game could even run on it, which is made even more awkward by the performance issues of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. It’s also unclear how Nintendo would handle a game that borrows from one of its iconic IPs brazenly, especially given how litigious the company can get.
The conversation may be revisited depending on whether Palworld can remain successful and if the Nintendo Switch 2, or whatever the next-gen console is called, can handle it. Nintendo is historically willing to take a firm stance regarding the games it distributes and the content it allows on its consoles, then change its mind once there’s money to be made. Even if Nintendo is angry today, if Palworld’s momentum continues, the company’s stance will likely soften.
