Palworld also referred to by many fans as Pokemon with guns has been massively successful upon launch. The game is still in early access and already has more than 1.5 million current and peak players at the time of writing this article. However, when you play the game you will see it shares a lot of similarities with Pokemon. This has existing and upcoming players concerned with things like whether it is legal or if Nintendo is going to sue Pocketpair for stealing or ripping them off. So if you too are worried about it then worry not here are the answers you are looking for!
Why Hasn’t The Pokemon Company, Gamefreak, or Nintendo Sued Palworld?
Takuro Mizobe the CEO of Pocketpair recently had an interview with Automaton Media. In it, he says that Palworld has cleared its legal reviews. The CEO also mentions that no action has been taken against it by the other companies. Here is what he had to say:
“We make our games very seriously, and we have absolutely no intention of infringing upon the intellectual property of other companies.”
The most important thing he had to say was in his opinion, he feels Palworld is closer in gameplay to ARK rather than Pokemon. The game does focus on the survival aspect as much as the RPG and monster capture part.
Is Palworld Legal or a Scam?
While the CEO assures the players about it clearing legal reviews. The game also answers the question of whether it is a scam in its FAQ on Steam. In it, they said it isn’t a scam and will be releasing on January 19th, 2024, which it did.
A thing to take note of is that they may consider expansions after the game’s full release. But that will be decided at a later time after they have the conversation with the community.
Why are Pokemon Fans going after Palworld?
Since Palworld is trending and breaking new records, it is sure to attract the attention of new players and fans of similar series. However, some fans have posted the Pals that are a bit too similar to existing Pokemon. You can check out some of their examples below:
Of course, this has also led to some funny responses like this one:
But considering there are actual Pokemon clones existing on Steam, PlayStore, or other sources. It is unlikely Nintendo will go after Pocketpair, especially if they have cleared legal reviews. That is all for the Pokemon Vs Palworld lawsuit. If you plan to try out the game I suggest you check out our Palworld section.