Palworld has taken the gaming world by storm, but its heavy influence from the Pokémon franchise means the studio is being investigated. The Pokémon Company itself recently issued a statement expressing concerns about potential copyright infringement.
The game continues to sell in droves
The recent public statement – written in both Japanese and English – calls to attention “inquiries regarding another company’s game released in January 2024.” The message goes on to say that the Pokémon Company has “not granted any permission for the use of” its intellectual property.
As a result, an investigation is being launched, and “appropriate measures” will be taken. It should be noted that nowhere does it specifically mention Palworld. However, given the date being referred to – as well as PocketPair‘s game being likened to the Pokémon franchise by anyone who’s played it – most will make the connection.
While all this is going on, Palworld reigns supreme in the current gaming climate. Released just a week ago, the open-world survival title that enables players to catch cute animals called “Pals” has already sold over eight million copies.
Data from SteamDB shows that it recently surpassed the two million concurrent player mark on Steam. It’s rapidly gone down as one of the fastest-selling releases in recent gaming history.
Since day one, it’s been likened to a very Pokémon-style game, so it’s probably not too surprising that the official developer is looking to investigate. The Pokémon Company is partially owned by Nintendo, which is known to have a pretty ruthless legal department.
It can’t be said what the future of Palworld will be now that it’s coming under fire for potential infringement. If you are interested in playing it, it’s available on PC and Xbox Game Pass. However, do be aware that it’s still in Early Access and is known to have a few serious bugs.
