The development team behind Pokémon Sleep, Select Button, is handing over management responsibilities to the recently founded Pokémon Works. Read on for more details about the change.

Pokemon Sleep Development Shifts to New Pokemon SubsidiaryFrom Select BUTTON to Pokemon Works

In March of this year, The Pokemon Company established a new subsidiary, Pokemon Works, which sparked speculations about its future projects. Eight months later, it appears that Pokemon Works will assume the development and future updates of Pokemon Sleep from mobile game developer SELECT BUTTON.

"Until now, the development and operation of Pokemon Sleep has been handled by two companies, SELECT BUTTON Co. Ltd. and The Pokemon Company, Ltd.," the developers announced through the game app, translated via machine translation. "However, the development and operation of Pokemon Sleep will gradually transition from SELECT BUTTON to Pokemon Works."

This news was announced in a general notice on the Japanese Pokemon Sleep app. It remains unclear how this change will impact the global version of the game, as the news is not currently visible within the app’s News section.

Not much is known about Pokémon Works and their current endeavors. However, according to a greeting from Chief Executive Officer Takuya Iwasaki on their website, the company is "a production team born from two companies, The Pokémon Company and Iruka Co., Ltd."

Additionally, Pokémon Works reportedly shares a facility in Shinjuku, Tokyo with ILCA, the game production studio behind the 2021 Pokémon reimaginings, Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, and a co-developer of the Pokémon HOME service. Iwasaki mentioned in his greeting that Pokémon Works also assisted in the production of Pokémon HOME.

While their past involvement with Pokémon is limited to these initiatives, the company pledges to "create an experience that makes Pokémon more tangible... so that everyone can enjoy interacting and exploring with Pokémon." How they intend to realize this aspiration in Pokémon Sleep remains to be seen.