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Nintendo, Pokémon Trim Pocketpair Patent Suit Scope

7/14/2026

Summary

Nintendo Sues Pocketpair

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company sued Pocketpair in September 2024 over patents covering creature-catch throws and riding.
Pocketpair’s December 2024 update removed the Pal Sphere, added a glider, and narrowed the suit’s scope.
Analysts capped potential recovery at about 5 million yen (~$30,000) and noted Nintendo’s $40 million patent-litigation loss.
Nintendo and The Pokémon Company narrowed claims in November 2025 to Palworld builds released before the mechanic patches.

Summary

Palworld Hits 850k

Palworld 1.0 hit over 850,000 concurrent Steam players on July 12, 2026, ranking second only to Counter-Strike 2.
The game held a 93.41% positive Steam rating after launch, per Pocketpair publishing head John “Bucky” Buckley.
Pocketpair kept the $29.99 MSRP but discounted the game to $20.99 through July 23, 2026.
The 1.0 update added islands, weapons, Pals and a new progression system, prompting the studio to urge fresh saves.

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Nintendo Sues Pocketpair

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company sued Pocketpair in September 2024 over patents covering creature-catch throws and riding.
Pocketpair’s December 2024 update removed the Pal Sphere, added a glider, and narrowed the suit’s scope.
Analysts capped potential recovery at about 5 million yen (~$30,000) and noted Nintendo’s $40 million patent-litigation loss.
Nintendo and The Pokémon Company narrowed claims in November 2025 to Palworld builds released before the mechanic patches.

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