6 Months Later, Palworld Dev Insists Nintendo Is Yet to Make a Complaint Despite ‘Pokémon Rip-Off’ Claims

The developer of Palworld has said Nintendo is yet to make a complaint after The Pokémon Company said it intended to investigate amid the “Pokémon rip-off” claims earlier this year.

Palworld, dubbed ‘Pokémon with Guns,’ launched in early access form in January 2024 on PC via Steam and on Xbox as a day-one Game Pass title. It saw enormous popularity overnight, becoming one of the biggest game launches of all time. But it’s also one of the most controversial. Developer Pocketpair has said its staff has received death threats amid the Pokémon “rip-off” claims, which it has denied.

Soon after Palworld’s launch Nintendo moved quickly to remove an eye-catching Pokémon mod, then The Pokemon Company issued a statement, saying: “We intend to investigate and take appropriate measures to address any acts that infringe on intellectual property rights related to Pokémon.” At the time, IGN asked lawyers whether Nintendo could successfully sue.

Now, speaking to Game File, Pocketpair boss Takuro Mizobe insisted it has yet to receive any complaint from Nintendo or The Pokémon Company, even after The Pokémon Company issued its statement that it intended to launch an investigation.

“Nothing at all,” Mizobe said. “Nintendo and the Pokémon Company didn’t say anything to us. Of course I love Pokémon and respect it. I grew up with it, in my generation.”

Despite this, fans continue to compare Palworld to Pokémon, and this week’s major new update, called Sakurajima, will no-doubt fuel those comparisons. Pocketpair has also teased Palworld on PlayStation, although a Nintendo Switch version sounds unlikely. IGN’s Palworld early access review returned an 8/10. We said: “Palworld may crib quite a bit from Pokémon’s homework, but deep survival mechanics and a hilarious attitude make it hard to put down – even in early access.”

It turns out that in 2010, then student developer Mizobe created a DS game while enrolled in a one-year Nintendo Game Seminar in Tokyo. Game File asked if he learned any lessons from working with Nintendo that stuck with him years later.

“Kind of,” Mizobe replied, reportedly with a laugh. “I always think: to make new things is very hard. In game development, of course, sometimes we have to do it, but, as much as possible, I try to avoid creating new things.”

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.