Palworld developer Pocketpair has released an update High-profile patent lawsuit by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company against the company.
According to PocketpairNintendo and The Pokémon Company are seeking 5 million yen (approximately $32,846) each plus damages for tardy payment, as well as an injunction against Palworld that would block its release.
Pocketpair also confirmed that Japanese patents for catching Pokémon in a virtual field have been sued for alleged infringement. Following Palworld’s massive launch earlier this year on PC and Xbox, comparisons were made between Pals and Palworld’s Pokémon, with some accusing Pocketpair of “ripping off” Pokémon’s designs. However, instead of filing a copyright infringement lawsuit, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company went the patent route.
It is worth noting that Palworld does feature a mechanic that involves throwing a ball-like object (called a Pal Ball) at monsters on the field in order to catch them, similar to the mechanics seen in the 2022 Nintendo Switch exclusive game. Pokémon Legends: Arceus. One of the other patents in question involves riding Pokémon (Palworld also allows players to ride Pals).
Pocketpair said Nintendo and The Pokémon Company are seeking an injunction against the game and damages for some of the damages incurred between the date the patents were registered and the date the lawsuit was filed (September 18, 2024).
Here are the target patents:
[Patent application date: July 30, 2024]
[Patent registration date: August 27, 2024]
[Patent application date: February 26, 2024]
[Patent registration date: May 22, 2024]
[Patent application date: March 5, 2024]
[Patent registration date: July 26, 2024]
Pocketpair vowed to take Nintendo and The Pokémon Company to court, saying, “We will continue to reaffirm our position on this matter in future legal proceedings.”
Patent experts say Nintendo and The Pokémon Company’s lawsuit against Pocketpair is evidence of the threat posed by Palworld, which has since been released for PS5.
In the article regarding GI.bizIntellectual property expert and associate at MBHB law firm Andrew Velzen argued that the shocking lawsuit shows “how seriously Nintendo views the threat from Palworld.”
Palworld launched on Steam for $30 and went straight to Game Pass on Xbox and PC earlier this year, breaking sales and concurrent player records in the process. Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe said Palworld’s launch was so large that the developer was unable to cope with the huge profits the game generated.
Still, Pocketpair acted quickly to capitalize on Palworld’s breakthrough success, signing a contract with Sony start a novel company called Palworld Entertainment to expand its intellectual property.
Wesley is the UK news editor at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. Wesley can be reached at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.