“It changed a lot of things for us” Palworld community manager says that Nintendo lawsuit was a “shock” to Pocketpair, because “no one even considered” patent infringement

According to Palworld developer Pocketpair’s community manager, the legal action taken by Nintendo and The Pokemon Company caught them by surprise. The lawsuit, filed last September, alleges patent infringement, something that was not anticipated by the studio.

The community manager, John ‘Bucky’ Buckley, mentioned that the news of the lawsuit was unexpected and had a significant impact on the team at Pocketpair. Despite conducting legal checks before the game’s release in Japan, the lawsuit still came as a shock.

Buckley explained how the lawsuit affected their plans for the game’s release on PlayStation and participation in the Tokyo Game Show, leading to the need for increased security measures.

Along with seeking an injunction against Palworld, Pocketpair could potentially face a payment of ten million yen if they lose the case, with five million yen each to Nintendo and The Pokemon Company.