Pocketpair, the builders behind Palworld, has introduced its first undertaking as a writer—a brand new horror recreation alongside Surgent Studios. This comes just a few months after the studio liable for Tales of Kenzera: Zau put its workforce on discover for redundancy.
“We seen a sample within the leisure trade, and Pocketpair has given us the chance to make a horror recreation about it,” Surgent Studios CEO Abubakar Salim says in a press launch. “Each Surgent and Pocketpair are well-versed in taking dangers. This recreation might be quick and peculiar, and we expect gamers might be considering what we’ve to say.”
This upcoming horror recreation will not be in any approach associated to Surgent Studio’s earlier recreation, Tales of Kenzera: Zau, however that does not imply the studio has left that universe behind totally. “We’re nonetheless in earnest dialog about additional initiatives set within the Tales of Kenzera universe, however this might be a standalone piece: A mile marker between the place we’ve come from and the place we’re going,” Salim continues.
We’re happy to announce that our first undertaking as Pocketpair Publishing might be supporting a model new horror recreation from @surgentstudios !Pocketpair Publishingの最初のプロジェクトとして、SURGENT STUDIOSの完全新作のサポートを開始しました。 SURGENT STUDIOS is a studio with an… pic.twitter.com/hqJcCbie3SJanuary 23, 2025
A horror recreation from Surgent Studios actually does sound attention-grabbing. I had lots of enjoyable with Tales of Kenzera: Zau’s platforming, fights, and funky skills, and regardless of not making it to the highest of my listing, it was one of many video games that basically caught out to me final 12 months. So, I am fairly enthusiastic about what this developer will do with a horror recreation.
“That is the power I wish to see driving video games in 2025—builders lifting one another up, creating collectively, and pushing the trade ahead,” Salim says. “Huge like to the Pocketpair workforce! It’s an unimaginable honor to be the primary partnership introduced with Pocketpair Publishing. We’ve been cooking up one thing enjoyable, and I can’t wait to share it with you all. Keep tuned!”
Nonetheless, this new idea is completely different from the earlier Undertaking Uso pitch that Salim talked about on the finish of final 12 months. Salim described Undertaking Uso as a singleplayer isometric, Afro-gothic motion RPG: “We nonetheless have a lot extra to say and a lot extra to construct on,” Salim says in an interview with IGN. “And the audiences that we have already began to construct as properly, and the gamers and the individuals who wish to champion us, they wish to hear extra…We’re prepared. We’re so prepared. It’s nearly taking that leap of religion with us.”
No matter what the undertaking is, it is nice to see Surgent Studios again on its ft after a tough few months on the finish of final 12 months. Earlier than it needed to put its workforce on discover for redundancy whereas the studio scrambled to discover a new writer and supply of funding, it laid off “simply over a dozen” staff. It looks as if Pocketpair noticed the potential that this developer has and wished to assist get its initiatives again on observe.
“Recreation growth comes with many challenges, however we wish to ease that course of as a lot as potential and supply an setting the place creators can pursue their desires,” the pinnacle of Pocketpair Publishing, John Buckley, says in a press launch. “We’re happy to have the ability to assist Surgent Studios’ new title as our first step. We deeply sympathize with its unique concepts and keenness and are honoured to assist them understand their imaginative and prescient. We are going to respect the autonomy and imaginative and prescient of builders and work collectively to make nice video games for folks everywhere in the world.”
Whereas it is nice to see Pocketpair develop its horizons and assist different indie studios alongside the best way, it nonetheless has to take care of The Pokémon Firm and Nintendo’s patent infringement lawsuit. Pocketpair confirmed that it had acquired discover of this lawsuit, and regardless of not getting any particular particulars about what patents it was infringing upon, the studio stated that it’s working onerous to make sure this does not have an effect on new initiatives or upkeep on video games like Palworld.
