UPDATE 11am UK: Palworld maker Pocketpair has now responded to Nintendo’s lawsuit, and vowed to fight back on behalf of fans and to ensure indie developers are “not hindered or discouraged from pursusing creative ideas”. Read our full coverage here.
ORIGINAL STORY 2am UK: Nintendo is suing Pocketpair, developer of hit Pokémon-style game Palworld, over the alleged infringement of “multiple patent rights”.
In a brief public statement posted to Nintendo’s website in the early hours of this morning, the company confirmed it had filed a patent infringement lawsuit in a Tokyo court yesterday, 18th September.
Nintendo is now seeking “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”.
Palworld has constantly been compared to Pokémon since it was first announced, and has often been referred to as “Pokémon with guns”. The monster collecting and battling game has even come under fire from Pokémon’s own fans, who have said that many of Palworld’s creature designs are similar.