Nintendo Quietly Alters Patent in Ongoing Palworld Lawsuit

Palwold vs Nintendo getting more "Bizarre" (Image Credit: Pocketpair/Nintendo)

Nintendo has modified one of its patent claims amid its ongoing legal battle with Pocketpair, the developer of Palworld.

For nearly a year, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company have been pursuing a patent infringement lawsuit against Palworld and its publisher, Pocketpair. The core of the lawsuit revolves around three patents that Nintendo alleges were infringed upon. Two of these patents deal with character capture mechanics, while the third focuses on the technical function of smoothly switching between rideable entities within the game.

Now, according to a report by GamesFray, Nintendo has revised the claim tied to that third patent. This revision, submitted to the Japan Patent Office, has been officially approved. While the modification doesn’t add any new technical content, its wording is what caught many off guard. Experts suggest the phrasing is unusually convoluted, possibly in an attempt to make the patent more defensible in court—or perhaps harder to challenge.

The updated claim uses phrases such as “even when”, which is notably uncommon in legal patent language. Here’s a segment from the revised text:

“...and even when any boarding character other than the aerial boarding character capable of moving in the air is the currently selected boarding character and a first operation input is given when the player character is in the air, the computer causes the aerial boarding character to appear in the virtual space, and causes the player character to board the aerial boarding character instead…”

Legal analyst Florian Mueller from GamesFray weighed in, calling the amendment “bizarre” and likening it to a “Hail Mary.” Mueller, who has followed patent litigation for over 15 years, noted that he’s never seen such phrasing in a claim and interpreted the change as a potential sign of desperation: a way to salvage a patent that may not stand strong in its original form.

As per the report, parties typically avoid modifying patents mid-litigation unless they believe the original version is vulnerable to invalidation. However, altering the language can sometimes help the litigant counter arguments of invalidity and better align the claim with the accused product—Palworld in this case.

It’s also worth noting that Nintendo’s move might not be aimed solely at Pocketpair. Some observers speculate the strategy may be about setting a precedent to deter future developers from creating Pokémon-inspired titles that toe the legal line.

The timing of the amendment suggests Nintendo is doubling down on the case, possibly due to the unexpected strength of Pocketpair’s defense. Ever since Palworld was released, its resemblance to the Pokémon series has been widely debated online. Nintendo has claimed that the game borrows not just visuals but also gameplay systems integral to the Pokémon franchise, including its creature-catching mechanics.

However, Pocketpair has consistently denied these claims and has argued that the patents Nintendo is leaning on are either too broad or not directly applicable. Whether this latest patent revision will tip the scales in Nintendo’s favor remains to be seen, but it certainly adds another layer of complexity to an already tangled legal fight.

For now, Palworld continues to operate, but all eyes will be on the court’s next steps—especially after Nintendo's bold legal maneuver.