Since its reveal, Palworld was immediately compared to Pokémon, the popular franchise from Nintendo, Game Freak, and The Pokémon Company. The game from Pocketpair was a resounding success, selling millions of copies in just a few days. However, it did not escape controversy for allegedly copying the foundation of the multi-million dollar pocket monsters franchise.
What many saw as inevitable happened this week, as Nintendo filed a lawsuit against Palworld and Pocketpair for alleged patent infringements. The indie studio was quick to respond to the move by the house of Mario and other franchises, releasing a statement addressing the issue just a few hours ago.
In the statement, they expressed regret over the situation and made it clear that they would respond to Nintendo's lawsuit, having already begun legal proceedings to defend themselves against the accusations. Pocketpair took the opportunity to thank their players for their support during this time.
Palworld and Pocketpair will face off against Nintendo after receiving a lawsuit
"Yesterday, a lawsuit was filed against our company for patent infringement. We have received notice of this lawsuit and will begin the appropriate legal proceedings and investigations into the claims of patent infringement," the indie studio stated.
They also revealed that they currently lack detailed information regarding the specific patents they are accused of violating, which prompted Nintendo to take legal action. Pocketpair emphasized that they are a small company whose goal "has always been to create fun games."
They added that they will not abandon this goal despite the lawsuit, as their developers know that Palworld has brought "joy to millions of players around the world." They confirmed that they will not abandon the game and will continue to release updates in the future.
"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.
We apologize to our fans and supporters for any worry or discomfort that this news has caused. As always, thank you for your continued support of Palworld and Pocketpair," the company concluded.
As of the time of publication, no further details have been revealed regarding Nintendo's lawsuit or Pocketpair's plans to face it and keep Palworld safe. Understandably, fans of the game are concerned and fear the worst, as Nintendo has won numerous similar lawsuits in the past.
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