Nintendo sues "Palworld" studio
The "Pokémon with guns" game "Palworld" is said to have infringed patents. Nintendo goes to court together with The Pokémon Company.
Now after all. Nintendo files a lawsuit against Pocketpaire together with The Pokémon Company. The Japanese studio behind "Palworld" was already confronted with accusations of copying at the launch of the surprise hit. The multiplayer survival game, in which you can catch fantasy creatures, ride them and even equip them with weapons, is described by many as "Pokémon with guns". On closer inspection, the two games have little in common in terms of content, but the inspiration seems clear in terms of design.
A court in Tokyo, where the lawsuit was filed, must now decide whether Pocketpair has committed patent infringement or whether the whole thing is within the legal framework. At the beginning of the year, The Pokémon Company was still cautious about possible patent infringement by "another company's game". Nintendo is co-owner of The Pokémon Company together with Creatures and Game-Freak. Pocketpair, on the other hand, said in an interview in June that they had never heard from Nintendo and co.
That has now changed. Nintendo and "The Pokémon Company" claimed an injunction for infringement and damages in a statement. Pocketpair has now responded to the lawsuit. The company blog states that it does not know which patents have been infringed. The company will take appropriate legal measures to counter the lawsuit.
"Palworld" was released in January this year on PC, Xbox Series X/S and in the Game Pass. Since then, the game has been downloaded over 25 million times. With a peak value of 2.1 million concurrent players, it ranks third on Steam behind "PUBG" and "Black Myth Wukong".
Update: Text supplemented by statement from Pocketpair
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