Developer Game Freak is notorious for their collaborative efforts with Nintendo over the past 27 years. From Pokémon’s Game Boy origins in 1996, to last year’s Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, the franchise has indisputably made a name for the Tokyo-based studio. While Pokémon may be what made the company a household name, Game Freak has developed other games. One of their earliest examples being 1994’s Pulseman on Sega’s Mega Drive. Publisher Private Division, known for titles such as The Outer Worlds and OlliOlli World, announced today that they would be partnering with Game Freak on their next title. This marks the first time Game Freak has worked alongside a Western publishing studio.
“From the beginning, Private Division was the publisher we wanted to work with on our new game. Their track record and global expertise give us all the confidence to create a sweeping new action-adventure game that we can’t wait to share more about in the future.” – Kota Furushima, Director at Game Freak
Codenamed Project Bloom, Game Freak’s latest title will be an action-adventure title featuring a brand-new IP. While very little information has been provided, the game will be “Bold and tonally different from our prior work” according to Furushima. As of now, we can only speculate what the game will entail, based on the first piece of concept art.
Project Bloom Concept Art 1
Besides the above artwork, the only other hint of information comes in the form of the studios’ partnership graphic. Game Freak has been expanding its game’s worlds; dabbling in the open-world genre. Last year’s Pokémon Legends: Arceus acted as the studio’s baby steps into the genre, and Project Bloom could potentially be their next big step forward. It’s worth noting the visual style shown in the new game’s concept art has a very realistic look. This might be hinting at a Game Freak experience on next-generation hardware.
Private Division x GameFreak Partnership
“Over the past three decades, you’d be hard pressed to find a studio which has released more iconic hits than Game Freak,” ~ Michael Worosz, Chief Strategy Officer, Take-Two Interactive, and Head of Private Division
Project Bloom is projected to be released sometime during Take-Two’s Fiscal Year 2026. For now, we can only speculate. What do you think of Game Freak and Private Division’s partnership? Does the announcement of Project Bloom excite you? What type of game do you think it will shape up to be? Keep it locked to Marooners’ Rock for all things gaming!
