The Pokemon Company Is Investigating Palworld for Possible IP Infringement

The Pokemon Company has released a statement with regards to allegations to Palworld is infringing on the beloved Nintendo video game series. Over the last week, a brand new game has completely taken on the video game industry by storm. Developer Pocketpair released a brand new game, Palworld, which is essentially an open-world multiplayer game that is very similar to Pokemon. You catch various creatures that look an awfully lot like Pokemon and you can do as you please with them from there, whether that be breeding them, making them fight or taking them somewhere to be sold. However, one of the big distinguishing factors is that these not-Pokemon creatures can carry big ol' machine guns, which is appealing for obvious reasons. The game has sold over 7 million copies on Steam alone since its release on Friday and it is also available as an Xbox Game Pass title. It has shattered records for concurrent players on Steam and looks like it won't slow down anytime soon.

However, many have raised concerns over whether or not the game is infringing on Pokemon because of how similar it really is, all the way down to the character designs. Nintendo is a pretty litigious company and it hasn't wasted anytime when it comes to cracking down on Palworld mods that blatantly infringe on Pokemon's IP, but the game itself has been up in the air on whether it violates anything. After no shortage of discourse, The Pokemon Company has released an official statement on its stance on Palworld. The company has acknowledged the claims of it infringing on Pokemon, though didn't specifically name Palworld, and is looking to investigate and "take appropriate measures" against anything that may be infringing on Pokemon's IP.

"We have received many inquiries regarding another company's game released in January 2024. We have not granted any permission for the use of Pokémon intellectual property or assets in that game. We intend to investigate and take appropriate measures to address any acts that infringe on intellectual property rights related to the Pokémon. We will continue to cherish and nurture each and every Pokémon and its world, and work to bring the world together through Pokémon in the future."

Of course, this doesn't mean The Pokemon Company will take anyone to court or pursue legal action at this time. However, Palworld is certainly on The Pokemon Company's radar and the fact that it had to make a very public statement like this means it's not something insignificant. Whether anything comes from this remains to be seen, but we'll just have to wait and see what happens. Prior to The Pokemon Company's statement, Pocketpair had already stated it is not too worried about the claims of Palworld plagiarizing Pokemon.