A Pokemon vs. Palworld Timeline Leading Up to the Lawsuit
What events led up to Nintendo and The Pokemon Company's lawsuit against Pocketpair?
This week, Nintendo and The Pokemon Company announced a joint lawsuit against Pocketpair, the developer of Palworld. The lawsuit alleges that Pocketpair's game infringes on Nintendo's patents, though it does not make clear which patents those might be. While the timing itself was a bit surprising, fans of the Pokemon franchise expected that Palworld's existence might result in some kind of litigation. Long before the game's release, Pal designs have drawn comparisons to specific Pokemon, with some fans arguing that they might violate Pokemon copyrights. However, it remains to be seen whether this will have any role in the lawsuit.
It's been a long journey since Palworld was first announced, and a lot has happened during that time. Below, we've outlined a timeline of several major events that have led to this newly announced lawsuit:
- June 5th, 2021: Pocketpair announces Palworld. The game's first trailer earns it the nickname "Pokemon with guns."
- May 26th, 2023: Pocketpair reveals a new trailer outlining how to catch Pals: weakening them with attacks and then throwing a "sphere," which resembles a Poke Ball.
- June 8th, 2023: Palworld gets a new trailer at Summer Game Fest. Viewers start to point out similarities between Pal designs and Pokemon. "I love how the creatures are re-designed just barely enough to avoid being sued by Nintendo," writes one YouTube user.
- January 19th, 2024: Palworld releases on Xbox and PC, quickly selling millions of copies, and seeing huge numbers on Xbox Game Pass.
- January 24th, 2024: Nexus Mods declares that it is "not comfortable" hosting mods that turn Pals into Pokemon. Pocketpair claims that it has received death threats over Pokemon similarities. That same day, The Pokemon Company announces that it intends "to investigate and take appropriate measures to address any acts that infringe on intellectual property rights related to the Pokemon."
- June 25th, 2024: Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe tells Game File that technical limitations would prevent Palworld from coming to Switch. Fans anticipate a release on Nintendo's Switch successor.
- July 10th, 2024: Pocketpair, Aniplex, and Sony Music Entertainment announce joint venture to "look for other opportunities in terms of merchandising and establishing Palworld as a brand." Palworld Entertainment would be the Pal equivalent to The Pokemon Company.
- September 18th, 2024: Nintendo and The Pokemon Company announce joint lawsuit against Pocketpair.
- September 19th, 2024: Pocketpair responds to the lawsuit, saying it is "unaware of the specific patents we are accused of infringing upon, and we have not been notified of such details."
It remains to be seen how the lawsuit will play out, and whether or not the courts will rule in Pocketpair's favor. There have been a number of Pokemon inspired games over the years, none of which have resulted in this kind of legal action from Nintendo or The Pokemon Company. It will likely be a while before we know the final result of the lawsuit, but we should expect to learn a lot more information in the coming months.
Have you been following the controversy surrounding Palworld? Do you think Nintendo and The Pokemon Company have a strong case? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp, on Bluesky at @Marcdachamp, or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!
