❘ Published: 2024-10-13T14:27:59

Game Freak released a statement confirming that it suffered a data breach in August 2024, just days before a massive leak of the company’s assets on October 12.

The document, originally published in Japanese and translated into English, reads: “In connection with unauthorized third-party access to our server in August 2024, it was found that personal information of our employees, etc. ., had been disclosed. »

It confirmed that 2,606 cases of “personal information” were compromised, including names and email addresses. Additionally, the company indicated that in response to this breach, it would contact “affected employees individually.”

“For those who are unable to contact us individually due to retirement, etc., we will notify you in this announcement,” the letter continues, adding “We will set up an inquiry window on this matter and we will respond.”

Included in the list of measures to prevent recidivism, Game Freak said it had “already carried out reconstruction and re-inspection of the server” and would “work to prevent recurrence by further strengthening measures security”.

The Pokémon Company

The October 12 leak contained details about the tenth generation of Pokémon and the Switch 2.

It should be noted that the original letter is dated October 10, two days before the leaks began. In addition to source code for older Pokémon franchise games leaked online, details about Generation 10 and Nintendo’s upcoming Switch successor have been included.

Game Freak’s statement made no mention of commercial assets or intellectual property, so it is not immediately clear whether the August breach and the October 12 leaks are related, or whether the latter came from an entirely different source.

Neither Switch 2 nor the tenth generation of Pokémon have been officially revealed. The next generation of Nintendo hardware is expected to arrive sometime in 2025, while the only known Pokémon title currently in development is Legends ZA. The latter is a spin-off of the main RPG series and a follow-up to 2022’s Legends Arceus.