The Pokemon Company officially responds to Palworld’s publishing and game plagiarism allegations

Pokemon rights holders break out of their silence to talk about a “game launched by another company in January 2024”.

Since its successful launch, the Palworld game has been the subject of numerous controversies. His concept of placing virtual monsters, but also humans, in slavery or for food, may raise questions. Above all, Pals’ design is reminiscent of Pokemon.

Enough to make accusations of plagiarism against the game, especially when the studio seems to be a fan of the exercise. Enough to react to The Pokemon Company, the company co-owned by Nintendo that officially holds the reins of the Pokemon franchise.

A two-way statement

Here is the official press release published by The Pokemon Company on January 25, 2023.

We have received a lot of inquiries regarding another company’s game released in January 2024. We have not granted any permission to use Pokémon intellectual property or assets in this game. We intend to investigate and take appropriate action to remedy any violation of intellectual property rights. Related to Pokemon. We will continue to nurture and nurture each Pokémon and its world, and we will strive to bring the world together through Pokémon in the future.

As with any official press release, it needs to be analyzed to understand its true meaning. First of all, it is clear that ” Another company game was released in January 2024 » For which the company has received many requests is Palworld. With 8 million sales in 6 days, the game is arguably the biggest success of the Pokemon franchise.

The company is clear: Palworld Pokemon has no rights to intellectual property and so rights holders will conduct an investigation to determine if there has been plagiarism and theft, which could lead to a lawsuit.

Be warned though, this isn’t really a threat against Pocket Pair, the studio behind Palworld. In fact, this is a common response no doubt given to countless requests from journalists and lawyers over the course of several days. This message should also serve as a warning to other factions who might want to cross the red line, such as this Palworld mod that integrates Pokemon directly.

The response from The Pokemon Company is actually a minimal response here, with a classic reminder of the franchise’s importance and duty to respect intellectual property. At this point, it seems unlikely that the company will initiate a lawsuit against Pocket Jodi, despite the success of the game.

Plagiarism without trial

This is the difference between a trial for copyright infringement, which would be very difficult to prove in court, and a public debate regarding its morality. Palworld And its monster design’s uncanny resemblance to Pokemon.

An upcoming game announced from the developers of Palworld Called Never Grave. This looks like an uninspired copy of the game Hollow Knight With the game of Super Mario Odyssey. The studio went so far that you can just think of the hat to take control of the opposing creature.

The studio boss and founder makes no secret of it. In a 2022 interview for Wired Japan magazine.

On the other hand, I have a deep desire for as many people as possible to enjoy my work and for this reason, if there is a good idea in the world, I will accept it, and I don’t necessarily have to. Attentive to originality. I want to make it more appropriate or more carefree. I think it’s a good way to make sure you jump on what’s fashionable or trendy (laughs).

Jumping on what’s trendy without an ounce of originality. This is probably how we can describe it Palworld.

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