Pokemon developer Game Freak is hiring staff for a mystery console title

Pokemon developer Game Freak have caused a bit of a stir in the last few days following a pair of openings on job recruitment website Indeed. While there’s certainly nothing set in stone at this point, there are several indicators that point to a potential new console-based Pokemon title.

Pokemon games have typically released in pairs (Pokemon Red and BlueGold and Silver, et al) with a third, updated version of the game releasing between six-to-twelve months later (Pokemon YellowPokemon Crystal). Since the extremely successful launch of Pokemon Sun and Moon last year, rumours have persisted that the game’s third installment would, in a break from tradition, appear on the Nintendo Switch.

The positions as advertised on Indeed would seem to lend these rumours some credibility. The first ad seeks a “new title character modeler” whose role would be the creation of “super-deformed people, monster and item models.” The ad also says that applicants with Wii U and/or PS Vita dev experience will be looked upon favourably.

The second ad seeks a character designer, and this is where things seem to become clearer. The ad promises an opportunity to become a part of a “worldwide popular RPG,” and goes on to say that “since this title has been released for a long time, the developer environment is also very well set.”

The two job openings are for contract work that is scheduled to come to an end in May of 2018.

We’ve known for a while that The Pokemon Company had planned to support the Switch. Their chief exec Tsunekazu Ishihara has spoken publicly about their desire to develop for the Switch and how they would have to change the way they think of Pokemon to do so.

All of this is, of course, willful speculation on our part but, given that the mainline series of Pokemon games have always found their home on portable machines, it makes sense that the series could also find a home on the hyper-portable Switch as well.

Time’s gonna tell on this one.

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David Smith

David Smith is the former games and technology editor at The AU Review. He has previously written for PC World Australia. You can find him on Twitter at @RhunWords.