After fattening it up for a year, Nintendo sued "Pokémon: Paloo" for plagiarizing Pokémon!

Japanese gaming giant Nintendo, along with The Pokémon Company, officially filed a patent infringement lawsuit on 18 September against Palworld developer Pocketpair in the Tokyo District Court. The lawsuit claims that Palworld infringes on several patents held by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, seeking both an injunction and compensation for damages.

Source: Nintendo official website

Nintendo emphasised that it will continue to take necessary action against any infringement of its intellectual property, including the Nintendo brand itself, to protect the IP it has built over the years.

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Palworld Accused of Copying Pokémon

Palworld is an action-adventure survival game that combines monster-catching mechanics reminiscent of Pokémon with survival and construction elements. Players interact with creatures called "Pals" and can exploit or enslave these cute beings to engage in battles, construction, and development.

The game became a phenomenon after its early access launch earlier this year, quickly gaining traction in the gaming world. By February, sales had surpassed 25 million units. However, as the game rose in popularity, so did accusations of plagiarism, particularly regarding the design of some Pals, which were suspected to be AI-generated and similar to Pokémon characters. The game's mechanics have also been criticised for borrowing heavily from titles like The Legend of Zelda, ARK: Survival Evolved, and Minecraft, leading some players to call it a "stitch-up" of various classic games.

Interestingly, Pocketpair’s CEO Takuro Mizobe, who previously founded the cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck in Japan, personally funded the development of Palworld with ¥1 billion, much of which was sourced from his success in the crypto space.

Nintendo’s Legal Team Takes Action

Earlier this year, when Palworld was at the height of its popularity, The Pokémon Company publicly stated that it would take appropriate steps to protect its intellectual property. Pocketpair, meanwhile, has consistently denied any direct copying. In interviews earlier this year, the company clarified that Nintendo and The Pokémon Company had not contacted them regarding these issues, nor had they taken any legal action at the time.

However, just as Pocketpair announced a joint venture with Sony Music Entertainment and Aniplex in July to further expand Palworld globally—and with news surfacing that KRAFTON is developing a mobile version of the game—Nintendo and The Pokémon Company decided to strike. Some online commentators joked that Nintendo had "fattened up the target before the slaughter," referring to the timing of the lawsuit, suggesting that Nintendo waited for the game's global expansion to collect evidence.

It remains unclear which specific patents Nintendo and The Pokémon Company will cite in their lawsuit—whether the focus will be on character design, gameplay mechanics, or both. Opinions among players are divided, but many are confident that Nintendo’s formidable legal team, often referred to as "the most powerful legal department in the Eastern Hemisphere," will once again emerge victorious.

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Recent Victory: Pokémon Copycat Mobile Game in China

Notably, The Pokémon Company recently won a lawsuit in China over a knock-off Pokémon mobile game. The Shenzhen court ruled in favour of The Pokémon Company and ordered the defendant, a Chinese company, to pay ¥107 million (approximately $14.7 million) in damages. This case further highlights Nintendo's legal prowess and its unwavering commitment to defending its intellectual property on a global scale.