Nintendo, Pokémon Co. sue Palworld developer for patent infringement

Nintendo and the creators of Pokémon announced that they have filed a lawsuit against the developer of video game “Palworld” on Thursday.

In a statement, Nintendo said that the game infringed multiple patent rights, and sought for an injunction against infringement and compensation for damages.

“Nintendo will continue to take necessary actions against any infringement of its intellectual property rights including the Nintendo brand itself, to protect the intellectual properties it has worked hard to establish over the years,” the statement read.

In response, “Palworld” developer Pocketpair stated that they were unaware of said patents they were allegedly infringing and have received no notifications of said infringements.

“It is truly unfortunate that we will be forced to allocate significant time to matters unrelated to game development due to this lawsuit. However, we will do our utmost for our fans, and to ensure that indie game developers are not hindered or discouraged from pursuing their creative ideas,” Pocketpair said in a statement on Thursday.

“Pocketpair is a small indie game company based in Tokyo. Our goal as a company has always been to create fun games. We will continue to pursue this goal because we know that our games bring joy to millions of gamers around the world,” it added.

The developer apologized to fans of the game and said that they have begun appropriate legal proceedings following said lawsuit.

According to their website, Palworld is an open-world videogame that allowed players to roam around and capture “Pals,” or small creatures with “a diverse set of skills.”

The game also allowed players to engage in battle, training, and base-building with their “Pals.” —Jiselle Anne Casucian/JCB, GMA Integrated News