Palworld Developer Pocketpair Changes Pokémon-Like Summoning Mechanic

To be honest this feels like a clear downgrade to the game feel, but if gets them safe while they work on a better alternative then it’s understandable

Honestly, I like it. Hopefully, they can change enough to keep nintendo from finding a way to shut them down.

Always and forever on the side of Pocket Pair 🫡
It is shady and downright wrong that The Pokémon Company filed their patents AFTER the release of Pal World. An immoral attempt at monopolization that should be laughed out of any and every court.

Good. Anyone who has seen Pocket Pairs "games" before Palworld know they don't have an original bone in their body.

This whole situation really is just such a disgusting overreach on Nintendo's part.

I don't just get why they don't sue for copyright infringement for the monster designs. That's where they have a real case I think, they legit look like they just fed Pokemon designs into an A.I. generator.

Coming to an agreement it sounds like...

@LadyCharlie if you actually care about truth you should watch this https://youtu.be/8apzrwv75i0

These are the things that make me dislike Nintendo as a company, their hostility and hypocrisy. Nintendo also gets many ideas from other games for their own games and that includes Pokémon and Breath of the Wild, to name a few. When they threaten their fans for using Nintendo's music and characters in their fan art and tributes is charming, too. It was embarrassing when they challenged the EU regarding consumer's rights and then backpedalled to avoid the fines.

Go PAL world team, fight their gross sneaky lawfare.

Of course they did it. Palworld went beyond “inspiration” with Pokemon lmao. If anything they should do more changes tbh if Palworld wants to distinct themselves better.

But the YouTube lawyers told me Nintendo’s claims were baseless and would fail!

***** TPC and Nintendo for this nonsense lawsuit.

Copyright infringement is bad, but so is making consistently awful games in one of the biggest franchises.

@Bolt_Strike it's because they can't they're still creatively distinct enough to get away with it just like all those mario-like clones and such.

Lot of mad folks in this comment section

@LadyCharlie

Filed or not, those mechanics already existed in Arceus for example, which was out for a year(ish) prior, while the clone game was being developed. That's how patent and trademark law work, it often comes down to first public use.

Opinions are cool as cucumbers all day long but the facts will sort this out and both companies will come out the other side of this with a clear separation of these brands, and maybe gamers will have a new IP that becomes more of its' own thing, as it should be. Can Palworld stand on its' own with aping Pokemon?

Lol little late to make some superficial changes there. This doesn't make them look guilty at all.

Good job pocketpair, its not a downgrade it still feels like the same.
You can also give it a summoning (animation) vibe to it, make it more magical (maybe in a next update) if you guys need some help let me know.

This is admission of guilt.

And let's be honest, if Pokemon didn't exist palworld wouldn't exist. It is 100% taking advantage of other people's work and effort. That is the only reason they can make money. Because of ripping off what other people did. That is not commendable. It is trash.

If Nintendo was a small indie studio everyone would want to protect them and their work. The next time your hear of layoffs, know that if you support what palworld is doing you are part of why the industry is laying people off!

@edgedino Last time I checked those Mario clones don't have main characters that look a lot like Mario, just some vaguely similar elements. With Palworld you can find distinct elements of Pokemon designs in the monster designs. And the CEO has admitted to supporting and using A.I.

@jco83
Ah I see. Sony has gotten involved. This changes things quite a bit…

Two things can be true people, Nintendo can overreach in terms of their intellectual property and the devs can also be egregiously unoriginal!

This comment section almost feels like the US elections all over again. So divided. I hope y'all still invite each other over for Thanksgiving dinners!

Personally I still don't care who wins this whole thing. Both need a slap on the wrist for their own reasons, imho.

All they have to do to be safe is do things differently. Not that hard is it lol.

@jco83 moon channel doesnt even do research for his videos. I would say look at his open hand foundation "lawyer perspective" video but he took it down after getting called out by for not knowing what he was talking about.

So they’ve changed the thing Nintendo sued them over? Sounds like Nintendo won the lawsuit. Winning.

Still, I can’t believe PalWorld ended up being the game that was shunned at the VGA this year.

@PinderSchloss they still get high praise from sites as this one…..

Just picked up Palworld. It’s a brilliant game. It reminds me of a far more polished Arceus. But different enough that hasn’t ever made me think I should play either/or. Hope Palworld can continue to exist and iterate.

This is almost the same as admitting guilt.

Next step would be to change the blatantly ripped off designs of some creatures.

I have no sympathy for Palworld. Should Pokémon have a proper competitor? Of course it should, that would be great for everyone, but why are we championing a game that is very blatantly unoriginal and lazy? I feel like people just look at it as a Pokémon-like that runs better than modern Pokémon (despite not even having a Switch version for proper comparison) and put it on a pedestal for that alone.

If you want Pokémon to put out higher quality games, give it a higher quality rival I say.

@Ninetaled i saw a separate video all about that video he did, so i know about it. and while i was very disappointed to hear about it, and at the time i actually decided i wouldn't watch any of his videos anymore, i am so glad i didn't stick to that, and the fact it was deleted says a lot.

but anything else he has done has no effect on how incredibly insightful and eye-opening this "Nintendo v. Palworld" video is

Does this mean the end of Palworld farming by Nintendo media sites? I'd for one would be overjoyed if I didn't have to hear about this game ever again.

"... to 'ensure indie game developers are not hindered or discouraged from pursuing their creative ideas.'"

Interesting take on copying.

@koekiemonster Do you mean that praise is warranted or that they should be more critical?

I’m always cautious with review scores for Nintendo exclusives here.

Are Hayao Miyazaki and Joe Hisaishi going to sue Nintendo for the blatant copies of Mononoke Hime all over TotK?
The music is almost exactly the same in some parts. Not to mention all the plot elements.

@PinderSchloss they should be more critical.

@FishyS that amount is a smokescreen. Nintendo is also seeking an injunction to stop sales of the product.

Well, I guess Richard Garfield/Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro can now take Nintendo and the Pokemon Company to court over the Pokemon Trading Card idea saying that putting cards down and tapping them is a Magic the Gathering mechanic and was copied and Nintendo has A LOT to sue for.

You hear how absurd all it sounds? But, if Nintendo can take this company to court over throwing a marble and something coming out of it, well then.

This is now Nintendo makes all their money. They're so small and so limited that they live in paranoia every day. Imagine if Epic Games sued everyone over the cover-based mechanic? So they say, Imitation is best form of flattery. Some redlines are crossed, but we look past it simply to make friends and good relations because we never know if we're gonna have to call on them some day. It's simple a matter of Nintendo is in fear. Pokemon Company is their biggest source of income. To my recollection, they don't even own Pokemon Company who could leave them any time and make games elsewhere simply based on the fact we create relationships rather than seeking blood.

Stupid. Well, go get em Hasbro, they've got a lot of money and assets to take, especially with all the money they make with Pokemon cards alone

...Aaaaand out come the armchair lawyers.

You shouldn't be able to patent a mechanism that makes a game function... in that right... Nintendo has the right to sue every game developer in the world.... 🙄

😆 Palworld is better than Pokemon

@LadyCharlie Again, the patents are derivative patents of one that was filed well before Palworld's release.

That doesn't change the fact what Nintendo is doing is scummy and shady, but lets not keep spreading misinformation.

@Lizuka If it was overreach Pocketpair wouldn't have changed their game.

I like how the rhetoric has switched from Nintendo having no case to them being evil or something now that Pocketpair have practically admitted they originally plagiarised the mechanics.

I hope the injunction gets granted and this creatively bankrupt Palworld gets stamped out.

@GMMXX Wizards of the Coast is actually a great example, but maybe not for the reasons you think. Not only were Wizards partners with Nintendo in the original creation of the Pokemon TCG, making huge amounts of money on it, when that deal ended they did sue Nintendo. It was settled out of court. That's how the corporate world works, companies sue and counter-sue each other all the time to protect their rights, Nintendo just happens to have a huge spotlight on them.

The irony when Dragon Quest could easily have sued Nintendo for copyright for the way that Pokemon was shamelessly "inspired" by the DQ monster characters.

@Glasso Name one, and no not the image.

Name one Pokemon, the Dragon Quest monster and why exactly you think that one Pokemon is infringing on DQ and what parts of the design have been copied.

@Dr_Lugae not what? oh you don't like this ? How inconvenient for you

https://www.reddit.com/r/dragonquest/comments/1ac8p6f/showing_someone_dragon_warrior_and_they_say_the/

@GMMXX Wizards of the Coast actually did sue Nintendo…

@Bolt_Strike @Dee123
Yeah that's the main reason Nintendo is going after them. There is no way any gamer looks at pics and thumbnails from this game and doesn't first think it looks like a Pokemon game. A lot of people on here want to villianize Nintendo and GameFreak or whoever when PocketPair knew what they were doing when they created creatures that look so much inspired by well-known Pokemon designs.

I like how they put in: "are not hindered or discouraged from pursuing their creative ideas". They are making a LOT of money off their game that is "inspired by" Pokemon.

Pokemon will probably still look ugly on the next consoles. And I know, graphics aren’t everything but in Pokemon’s case it’s usually due to laziness. Something I can’t accept from a franchise that is this lucrative.
It’s almost as if they know people will buy it regardless of the effort the devs put in.
Not to mention it’s almost impossible to get a game over screen in these games.

I hope this case makes them want to take better care of their product.

This is not about Pokemon vs Palworld. It's about Nintendo vs Sony. Unfortunate for Pocketpair, but Nintendo cannot let Sony have this for free.

@Aurumonado yip you nailed it.

@Glasso Your evidence for claiming Pokémon ripped off Dragon Quest... is a meme picture from Reddit? Half the comparisons are just animals.

@FishyS I think Nintendo have their own lawyers, so this won't cost them an extra cent.

@DarkTron apart from the monster designs, Dragon Quest was also a monster catching game and it released in 1992. The first Pokemon released in 1996. 4 years seem like the ideal time frame to come with a concept for a similar game, pitch it and develop it.
Before either Pokemon or Dragon Quest there was Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei in the late 80s which introduced the monster catching idea.

Um...
Nexomon have very similar trap device to catch the monster exactly like Pokemon (Normal Nexotrap, Golden Nexotrap).

@Avaloner the argument is more that the Gen 1 designs are copied off Dragon Quest monsters (when in reality they're either based off real-life animals, Japanese myths, or just general fantasy) more that the gameplay is copied from Dragon Quest V (which did the gameplay style first, but over time has become distinct from what Pokémon ended up doing).

I mean the clear solution is have a special gun called the "Pal Gun" that transforms Pals into large bullets that you shoot from it. Pretty simple solution and fits with the game more.

@DarkTron Arguably, Pokémon's biggest influences are Mother (share a pool of devs, no surprise) and SaGa GB/Final Fantasy Legend, then Dragon Quest. Seriously, long post, but having played both, SaGa GB's mechanics are almost identical.

FFL/SaGa GB has four races, and one of these is a recruitable race called Monsters. These transform, though not necessarily linearly, by eating Meat dropped by enemies after battle, and can become even stronger Monsters.

SaGa also has limits to every single item, equipment, or ability found ingame. Three out of four recruitable races and equip some combo of any of these three, but Monsters are limited only to Abilities.

Unlike Items or Equipment, which eventually break, Abilities can have their uses recharged when sleeping at an Inn. Each move has their own use pool, unlike most Final Fantasy's traditional magic point system where the point pool is shared amongst all moves, but exactly like Pokémon's PP setup.

There is also an elemental weakness/resistance system, with the ability to be strong against, weak against, or just completely ignore the damage of an Ability.

Lastly, the stats are almost-identical between SaGa GB/FFL and Pokémon Gen 2, after the Special split:

HP: Hit points

Strength (SaGa GB)/Attack (Pkmn): Physical strength, affecting physical attacks.

Defense: Physical defense.

Agility: Dodging attacks.

Mana (SaGa GB)/Special Attack (Pkmn): The strength of Magic based attacks.

The only thing missing is direct Magic Defense, IIRC. Pokémon Gen I's Special stat covers both, but Gen 2 split both into separate stats, making Mana only similar to Gen 2's Special Attack stat.

The only real difference here is that Monsters can't grow their stats by levelling up, only by evolving into newer monsters. However, another recruitable race, the Mutants, have their stats grow after levelling up, and are limited to only four Ability slots.

If you combine Monsters on-the-nose stylings and evolutions with Mutants stat level ups and ability slot limitations, than congratulations, we have something functionally identical to Pokémon's monster mechanics.

@weisske The joke gets less funny when you repeat it almost verbatim several times. Careful, or you might get flagged as a spam bot 😉

@babybilly I'm not sure what joke you're talking about? I'm asking a genuine question about the article. I would like to know more about this game.

You've asked this question several times over the last year. I literally responded the answer to your inquiries myself less than a month ago and now you're asking again for some reason. Weird how you saw this reply but not my last one 🤔

@babybilly Sorry about that! I completely missed your last message. Im not on this site very often. But thank you for answering about my questions! I appreciate it! I hope that we get palworld on a future nintendo console. Looks nice.

@weisske If you say so lol. This is literally an exchange you had this year with another commenter that you did respond to:
>I asked this on another thread already but what nintendo console is/was Palworld on? I tried looking on the switch eshop but it's not there. Is it physical only or something?
>>Its on Xbox gamepass, and steam. Not on Switch or PS5. If you can id recommend playing palworld though its janky, it is fun.
>Wait if it's not on nintendo then why is Nintendolife talking about it? I thought they had separate sites for sony and xbox games?
>>Because alot of the monsters in the game look like pokemon with slight changes. Also people were expecting Nintendo to take legal action.

So... you lied lol. You've known that this game isn't on switch, just like it's already mentioned in every article you keep asking about it. It was easy enough to look it up in your previous comments, but you just keep asking the same thing for some reason lol. This website brings it up so much because it's a Nintendo news site. Not a "Nintendo games only" site.

@babybilly I haven't lied? And I apologized for missing your response. Like I said, I don't use this site too much. I think I've now posted more today than I have in like half a year lol.

But like I said, thank you for answering my question and I'm sorry I didn't reply to your previous answer.