Nintendo Co., Ltd. and The Pokémon Company Sues Palworld Creator Pocketpair

Indie wonder that began 2024 with one of the strongest starts the videogame industry has ever seen, Palworld, amassed a massive following just days after its release. Its surprising all-time peak broke records, and even its player base, though now dwindled, still goes strong as some of the most played games daily.

When this "Pokémon with guns" was released, many held their breath for the inevitable to happen — the sue-happy Nintendo to strike and claim copyright infringement on their creature-collecting darling. And though wait the videogame industry did, Pocketpair remained unharmed throughout all of these months, and after Nintendo stated that they would "investigate" if Palworld broke any laws, and then no further action was taken, it seemed like it wouldn't really happen.

Now, on the 18th of September 2024, Nintendo has fulfilled "the prophecy". In a statement named "Filing Lawsuit for Infringement of Patent Rights against Pocketpair, Inc.", Nintendo announces that had filed a patent infringement lawsuit in the Tokyo District Court against Pocketpair, stating the following:

This lawsuit seeks an injunction against infringement and compensation for damages on the grounds that Palworld, a game developed and released by the Defendant, infringes multiple patent rights.

Unlike what many expected, Nintendo did not sue Pocketpair over copyright infringement but rather patent infringement. According to patents.justia.com, The Pokémon Company holds the rights to 59 patents, the latest of which dates back to 2007, multiple of which they seem to believe Palworld infringes upon.

As it stands, Pocketpair has not provided a statement to their community.