Some Palworld fans are threatening a boycott of Nintendo products, citing new developments in the lawsuit between the two parties. Nintendo officially sued Pocketpair, the developer/publisher of Palworld, last September, alleging patent infringement. The video game giant asserts that certain gameplay features in Palworld, including certain mechanics related to catching monsters and riding creatures, infringe on Nintendo’s patents. Pocketpair has since altered how some of these mechanics work in a controversial update to Palworld.
Last week, the Nintendo-Palworld lawsuit got an unexpected update when it was revealed that Nintendo requested a correction to three of the patents involved in the lawsuit, changing the language around its patent on mounts. Screen Rant‘s coverage of this development drew a wide range of reactions, with comments that were too good to ignore as players questioned the legality of Nintendo’s decision, with some even calling for a boycott.
Palworld Fans Are Threatening To Boycott Nintendo Over Patent Lawsuit
“I Think It’s Time The Public Got Involved”
User Monsters opened their comment with, “There is no way that this is legal[.] Nintendo just can’t go and change a patent in the middle of a lawsuit.” Now, as far as we can tell, it is perfectly legal in Japan (as in the US) to modify a patent mid-lawsuit, although only minor corrections are allowed.
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However, whether it’s ethical to do so is a better question – as is whether it’s sound legal practice. The corrections will almost certainly come up in court, and could be used as part of Pocketpair’s defense, which has consistently claimed that Nintendo’s patents on these common game mechanics were never valid in the first place.
When another commenter, David, suggested getting the public involved with a petition (which Palworld fans have already tried), user Richard responded with a more extreme idea: boycotting Nintendo. Others, like michael and K, echoed that statement, with the latter suggesting facetiously that Nintendo might sue for loss of sales if a boycott were to negatively impact its numbers.
Of course, this is just an idea in its infancy now. Palworld fans haven’t mobilized en masse to boycott Nintendo products, at least not yet. But at least a handful of them have suggested it might be a good idea to get Nintendo to recognize their concerns.
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That said, this isn’t the first time this year fans have called for a Nintendo boycott, either, and the previous attempt was anything but a success. When Nintendo first revealed the price of the Switch 2 and its exclusive games, some suggested a boycott might eventually drive the prices down.
Although at least a few people probably participated, it doesn’t seem to have impacted the Switch 2’s sales. It’s currently the fastest-selling Nintendo console of all time, with 3.5 million units sold in its first four days of release, and prices remain unchanged.
What Fans Are Saying About The Latest Nintendo-Palworld Update
Fans Call For Changes To Patent Law – Or Just Something New From Nintendo
Players responded variously to the most recent developments in the Nintendo-Palworld lawsuit. Many called for a boycott, yes, but others suggested a deeper issue at play. Commenter Ceistyl chimed in with “a bone to pick on this patent infringement lawsuit… Why are patents permitted to last for so long when the system or patented feature isn’t being used by the company that holds the patent?“
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Still others suggested that Nintendo is just “greedy“ (JoeySC), or even envious of Palworld‘s success (John). One user, Meghan, called the lawsuit “petty,” and suggested that Nintendo’s time would be better-used elsewhere: perhaps they could “ACTUALLY make their own Pokémon game and even make it better than Palworld.“
Some users, like Alex, did defend Nintendo’s lawsuit, claiming that Palworld‘s infringement on Pokémon was always obvious. “Every single person I’ve ever showed Palworld said ‘oh so it’s Pokémon with guns’… they weren’t even trying to hide that they were ripping off Pokémon.”
Nintendo is not suing Pocketpair for copyright infringement based on its Pokemon-inspired designs, but patent infringement based on certain game mechanics.
Ultimately, I’m not sure if a boycott would have much effect on Nintendo’s sales numbers, or its approach to this lawsuit. Nintendo has a much bigger and more established fan base than Palworld, so it would take almost every Palworld player’s participation to really cut into its bottom line. If nothing else, though, it goes to show that Palworld fans are upset by Nintendo’s most recent legal move, and that public opinion may be swaying in Pocketpair’s favor.
Sources: Monsters, David, Richard, michael, K, Ceistyl, JoeySC, John, Meghan, Alex
Palworld
- Released
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January 19, 2024
- ESRB
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T For Teen Due To Violence
- Developer(s)
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Pocket Pair, Inc.
- Publisher(s)
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Pocket Pair, Inc.
- Engine
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Unreal Engine 5
