Nintendo reportedly has “zero chance” against current Palworld after major lawsuit change

Nintendo and The Pokemon Company have reportedly narrowed the scope of their Palworld lawsuit to older versions of the game, potentially reducing the chance that the current version or upcoming 1.0 release will be affected.

The lawsuit was first filed against Pocketpair in September 2024, with Nintendo alleging that Palworld infringed multiple patents. At the time, Nintendo said it was seeking an injunction and damages over the game, which had become a breakout hit shortly after its Early Access launch.

Now court records from the Tokyo District Court suggest Nintendo and The Pokemon Company amended the scope of their claims in November 2025. The lawsuit reportedly no longer targets all versions of Palworld and is now limited to older versions of the game.

Pocketpair

Palworld updates may have reduced Nintendo’s case

The change appears to be tied to updates Pocketpair made after the lawsuit was filed. In November 2024, Palworld patch v0.3.11 removed the ability to summon Pals by throwing Pal Spheres, instead making them appear beside the player.

Pocketpair later confirmed that the change was “indeed a result of the ongoing litigation,” while maintaining that Palworld did not infringe Nintendo’s patents and that the patents themselves were invalid.

The developer also said the changes were made to avoid disruption to the game’s ongoing development and distribution.

Another update, v0.5.5, changed how gliding works by requiring players to use a glider item rather than directly mounting a Pal to glide. Those changes appear to have helped limit the potential impact of the lawsuit on newer versions of the game.

Games Fray’s report claims Nintendo now has “zero chance” of prevailing against current Palworld versions under the revised scope, arguing that any injunction would apply only to older builds. The outlet also said the maximum damages at stake would be 5 million yen, roughly $30,000, if Nintendo succeeds on the remaining claims.

That would be a significantly smaller outcome than an injunction affecting the live game, especially with Palworld officially leaving Early Access on July 10, 2026. Pocketpair announced the full 1.0 launch during Summer Game Fest, calling it the game’s “definitive” release after years of updates.

The case is still ongoing. Automaton reports that a technical briefing is scheduled for October 1, followed by the court’s preliminary disclosure of its views on November 9.