Last September, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company officially filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Palworld developer Pocket Pair. The lawsuit aims to protect their brand and long-established intellectual property, causing significant ripples and raising questions about the outcome.
However, Pocket Pair announced today (May 8) that it is adjusting some of Palworld's game content, emphasizing that these modifications are "preventative measures taken to ensure the continued development of the game."
According to the official post on X:
Thank you for your continued support and companionship for Palworld. We sincerely appreciate every player.
During this time, with your support, we have continued to develop the game. However, due to ongoing litigation, we have been unable to provide much further information over the past few months. Even under these circumstances, many players from around the world have chosen to trust us and cheer us on, and we are truly grateful. Today, we wish to report on the current situation and some details we couldn't explain before.
We are currently facing a "patent infringement" lawsuit. However, we are very confident that Palworld does not infringe on any patents asserted by the opposing party. We also contend that the opposing party's patents themselves should be deemed invalid, and we will continue to handle this matter in accordance with the law.
While we firmly believe there is no infringement, to ensure Palworld's stable operation and updates regardless of future circumstances, we have decided to implement some "preventative" rule adjustments. These changes are intended to make the system design more explicitly "not mistaken for infringement." Given the nature of these adjustments, we will not revert the features to their original state until the court formally determines that "the old system is acceptable."
Specifically, in the v0.3.11 update released on November 30, 2024, we removed the function of "throwing a Pal Sphere to summon a Pal," and changed it to "summoning Pals directly next to the player." As many players suspected, this adjustment was indeed made in response to litigation risks. Concurrently, we have also made modifications to other designs that could potentially be mistaken for infringement. Our development team sincerely apologizes for any inconvenience caused by these changes.
Furthermore, in the upcoming v0.5.5 update, we plan to change the method of "gliding while riding a gliding Pal" to "gliding using a glider item." However, the Pal's original gliding performance will still apply as a bonus effect to the glider, so the actual gameplay experience will not differ significantly. Players can continue to use this function as long as a glider is equipped in their inventory.
Honestly, these modifications are not easy for us, but they are necessary to ensure the game's continued stable development and to clarify our position. We apologize once again for any concern or discomfort this may have caused. We will continue to work hard to develop new content and bring you a richer and more enjoyable gaming experience in the future.
When the "throwing a Pal Sphere to summon a Pal" mechanic was modified last November, many players already suspected that the adjustment might be related to the lawsuit. Pocket Pair has now officially confirmed that it was indeed "due to litigation risk considerations," adding that other game mechanisms previously questioned for infringement have also been progressively modified.
It remains to be seen whether such "preventative" adjustments will impact the ongoing lawsuit with Nintendo and The Pokémon Company. However, it is certain that Pocket Pair still maintains it has not committed any infringement. The outcome of the legal battle will likely depend on future developments.