Nintendo’s Palworld Lawsuit Hits a Wall After “Rare” US Patent Re-Examination Order

Nintendo’s case against Palworld just got shakier: the US Patent and Trademark Office has taken the unusual step of re-examining a key Pokémon patent, putting the company’s legal battle on even thinner ice.

Back in September, Nintendo was granted Patent No. 12,403,397 in the US—a patent covering core monster-battling mechanics, including how a player summons a sub-character (think Pokémon or Pals) to fight alongside them in-game. Now, just weeks after Japan rejected a similar Nintendo patent request, the US is reconsidering the validity of this newly minted patent over questions of “prior art.”

A Rare US Patent Re-Examination Shakes Nintendo’s Case

The move comes after USPTO director John A. Squires stepped in personally, something that almost never happens. Squires has ordered a full re-examination of Nintendo’s patent, stating there are “substantial new questions of patentability.” What’s at stake? This patent is central to Nintendo’s ongoing lawsuit against Palworld developer Pocketpair, launched after Palworld’s explosive success.

According to Squires’ order, two older patents, one from Konami (2002) and another from Nintendo itself (2019),might cover major parts of what Nintendo just patented. The specifics include controlling a player in a virtual world, summoning sub-characters to fight, and letting them move or battle automatically on command. The re-examination is triggered when an examiner believes there’s a solid chance the patent shouldn’t have been granted given existing inventions.

This kind of direct intervention is rare: Games Fray notes it’s the first since 2012. It doesn’t guarantee the patent will be revoked, but it makes that outcome much more probable. Nintendo gets two months to respond, and within that window, outside parties can pile on with their own challenges.

Back-to-Back Setbacks for Nintendo, Momentum for Palworld

This isn’t Nintendo’s only recent legal hurdle. In Japan, the Patent Office just rejected another Nintendo application covering monster capture and item-throwing mechanics. The reason? The requested patent described ideas already publicly available in older games, including Monster Hunter 4, Ark: Survival Evolved, and Pokémon Go.

Japan’s office was pointed toward these earlier games by a mystery third-party, widely suspected to be Pocketpair. Their documentation convinced examiners that Nintendo’s claimed inventions weren’t original enough to deserve a patent. While the Japanese ruling isn’t final, it throws another wrench in Nintendo’s global legal strategy.

All these roadblocks matter because Nintendo is suing Pocketpair for allegedly infringing multiple patents after the smash launch of Palworld. The company’s legal argument depends heavily on securing exclusive rights to gameplay mechanics like capturing creatures and commanding them in real time. If those patents get invalidated, Nintendo may lose a significant chunk of leverage in court.

Pocketpair is not backing down. The studio has vowed to fight the lawsuit all the way, saying it doesn’t want small game developers to be “hindered or discouraged from pursuing creative ideas.” With the US and Japanese patent offices both casting doubt on Nintendo’s claims, Pocketpair’s odds are looking stronger by the week.

As this drama unfolds, here’s the reality: patent battles in the gaming world are rarely quick or simple. Now, with two major setbacks in two countries, Nintendo’s push to own monster-battling mechanics is facing its toughest test yet.