Pocketpair’s Publishing Ventures: A Beacon of Hope for Indie Developers Seeking Funding

Palworld creator Pocketpair has recently established its own publishing division, and after reviewing “hundreds” of proposals, publishing head John ‘Bucky’ Buckley evidently has a great deal of empathy for developers “yearning for financing,” who might easily fall prey to “terrible agreements.”

Pocketpair Publishing opened last month and unveiled its inaugural project – a horror game developed by Surgent Studios, creators of Tales of Kenzera: ZAU. This is merely the beginning, as the publisher has received numerous additional proposals from other creators. Bucky emphasized that the main goal is focused on “providing developers the financial liberty to create the games they desire so they do NOT have to become entangled with unpleasant rule-makers and bullies.” It appears that the latter is something the publishing head has become increasingly attentive to in recent times.

“One observation I’ve made after countless publishing pitches and discussions is how simple it would be to exploit developers and compel them to sign dreadful contracts,” Bucky states. “Everyone seems incredibly eager for financing that it truly wouldn’t require much effort for some unscrupulous individual to snatch every last cent.”

He describes the situation as a “quite disheartening state of affairs,” and it genuinely is when you consider how much the gaming industry has been struggling lately. From widespread layoffs to studio closures, we have witnessed numerous gifted developers lose their positions in recent years, and as many have pointed out, securing funding for video games is extremely challenging in the current environment as well.

Further along in his Twitter discussion, Bucky mentions that “a number of shady individuals are packaging these agreements in quite horrible contracts that give them the power to shut down studios and seize IPs if they deem them to be ‘underperforming.'” Here’s hoping that with the aspirations he has previously articulated for Pocketpair Publishing in mind, the creators of Palworld will be able to assist some developers avoid getting ensnared in the “quite horrible contracts” he refers to.

Palworld’s launch with millions of players was initially managed by just one server technician who was “doing his utmost.”