Months after the release of Palworld, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company filed a lawsuit that claimed the breakout game from Pocketpair had infringed on their copyright. While Nintendo is Famous for lighting—and winning—high-profile legal fireworks, this one may not end as they had hoped.
The lawsuit filed in Japan in 2024 is expected to conclude later this year. In the lawsuit, Nintendo alleged that Palworld infringed on three patents. Nintendo and The Pokémon Company had earlier called for an injunction that would block the release of Palworld.
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In response, Pocketpair made significant changes to the game, including nerfing the ability to summon Pals via Pal Spheres. Those changes limited the scope of the lawsuit. A report by Gamesfray indicates that both parties have submitted their evidence. October 1 has been set aside for court presentation, while opinions will be expressed on November 9.
Since Nintendo and The Pokémon Company amended the scope of their claims to cover only the older versions of Palworld sold in Japan, that is, before Pocketpair made changes, the scope of the damage is limited.
“Even if — which is far from a given — Nintendo overcame all of the usual hurdles (defending its patents against Pocketpair’s invalidity contentions, proving infringement, and ultimately proving that any damage was caused by the alleged infringement), the most it could get is JPY 5 million, the equivalent of $30K,” explained the report on Gamesfray.
“This litigation is no longer about anything serious in commercial terms. It’s about a hypothetical injunction that doesn’t apply to current product versions and (if anything) a small damages award for a period during which Pocketpair generated limited new sales in Japan.”
Nintendo spends heavily on litigation. In its most recent annual report, the company revealed that it spent $40 million on patent litigation in the last business year. A $30,000 payout from Pocketpair, if they get it, would be nothing compared to their loss.
Pocketpair is still on track to release Palworld version 1.0 on July 10. The company said, “We are fully committed to delivering a deeper, more evolved, and definitive Palworld experience worthy of a full launch”.
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