Summary
Nintendo and The Pokemon Company have filed a lawsuit againstPalworlddeveloper Pocketpair for “infringement of patent rights.” Prior to its launch, many describedPalworldasPokemonwith guns. For those unfamiliar with the wildly successful title, the basic concept ofPalworldis that it combines survival game mechanics with features commonly seen in thePokemonfranchise, like using balls to catch monsters of various elemental types for use in battle and exploration.
WhenPalworldfirst became popular, concerns were raised that the game featuredPals that looked too similar to existing Pokemon, and that some of its features may be too similar to what’s been established by Nintendo’s franchise. Some expressed the opinion that Nintendo could potentially suePalworlddeveloper Pocketpair over the similarities between the IPs, and now that’s finally happening, roughly eight months after Pocketpair’s survival game was released in early access.
On September 18, Nintendo and The Pokemon Company filed a patent infringement lawsuit in the Tokyo District Court againstPalworlddeveloper Pocketpair. The lawsuit “seeks an injunction against infringement and compensation for damages on the grounds that Palworld […] infringes multiple patent rights.” According to Nintendo, the lawsuit is being filed because the company says it will “continue to take necessary actions against any infringement of its intellectual property rights” to protect the Nintendo brand and its various franchises that “it has worked hard to establish over the years.”
Nintendo and The Pokemon Company Are Suing Pocketpair
Palworldhas not issued a response to Nintendo’s lawsuit at the time of this writing. Previously, Pocketpair gave the impression that it hadn’t heard anything from Nintendo aboutPalworld, thoughNintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa stated in February, “We will take appropriate action against those that infringe our intellectual property rights.” It’s unclear exactly why Nintendo waited eight months sincePalworld’s early access to pull the trigger on a lawsuit, but this really couldn’t have come at a worse time for the popular early access survival game.
Currently,Palworldis available on PC and Xbox in early access, though there have been rumors that the game is set to have a big showing at Tokyo Game Show. It’s believed that the long-awaitedPalworldPlayStation portis going to be announced at the event, possibly coinciding with the game’s 1.0 release. The Nintendo lawsuit could potentially throw a wrench in those plans. It’s also unclear what this means for existing versions ofPalworldon PC and Xbox.
It’s no secret thatPalworldwas a monstrous financial success, but even so, fighting against Nintendo and The Pokemon Company in court is going to be hugely expensive and challenging. It will be interesting to see whatPalworlddeveloper Pocketpair has to say about the lawsuit, and hopefully, fans get some clarification on what this all means for the game’s future.
Palworld
WHERE TO PLAY
In this game, you can peacefully live alongside mysterious creatures known as Pals or risk your life to drive off a ruthless poaching syndicate. Pals can be used to fight and breed, or they can be made to work on farms or factories. You can even sell them or eat them.Survival: In a harsh environment where food is scarce and vicious poachers roam, danger waits around every corner. To survive, you must tread carefully and make difficult choices…even if that means eating your own Pals when the time comes.Mounts & Exploration: Pals can be mounted to traverse the land, sea and sky—allowing you to traverse all kinds of environment as you explore the world.Collect all kinds of exciting Pals to fight, farm, build, and work for you in this completely new multiplayer, open world survival and crafting game!
