Palworld changing game mechanics because of Nintendo lawsuit isn’t an admission of infringement, Japanese patent attorney stresses 

If you read the headline and thought, well duh, does that even need to be said?, you’re probably on the same page as many in the English-speaking community. However, reactions to the patent infringement lawsuit between Nintendo and Pocketpair have been quite different in Japan and in the West, which became especially apparent after the Palworld developer announced it would be swapping out game mechanics relevant to the case. 

While opinions in Japan are, like anywhere, varied and shouldn’t be generalized, Japanese patent attorney Kiyoshi Kurihara felt it necessary to address some of the backlash Pocketpair received following its May update. In the statement, the devs said that they are continuing to dispute both the claims of alleged infringement as well as the validity of Nintendo’s patents. At the same time, they announced that gliding on Pals and summoning them by throwing Pal Spheres would be removed from Palworld “to prevent further disruptions” to its development. 

According to Kurihara, this resulted in a good number of responses along the lines of, “Why would they change their game if they really believe Nintendo’s patents are invalid?” And looking at Pocketpair’s post on their Japanese X account, there is a noticeable number of responses that interpret the decision as an admission of infringement.  

Addressing such reactions, Kurihara explains that Pocketpair’s move is “standard procedure in patent infringement lawsuits.” A precautionary design change is a typical measure taken alongside denying infringement and counterclaiming patent invalidity. “This is a lawsuit,”  Kurihara stresses, “you need to make every argument you can.” Additionally, he explains that even plaintiffs do not typically cite design changes as an admission that the defendant acknowledges patent validity. 

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