Video Game Patents Are Often “Used In Bad Faith,” Says Dev

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Nintendo sued Palworld’s developer, Pocketpair, in Japan last year, claiming they copied some of Nintendo’s patented technology. The first part of the case focused on small similarities between Palworld and Pokemon. Recently, Nintendo received a patent for a core video game mechanic – allowing players to summon characters to battle each other. Now, a developer from Baldur’s Gate 3 has shared their thoughts on these kinds of patents and why companies pursue them.

Michael Douse, publishing director at Larian Studios (the creators of Baldur’s Gate 3), responded to a discussion on X (formerly Twitter) by saying that patents like these are often used unfairly. He has since deleted the post, according to GamesRadar.

Douse didn’t share any further details in the original online discussion, which has since been removed. However, Nintendo has been very clear about its issues with Palworld. Their initial legal complaint requested about $33,000 for three patents they claim Palworld violated. Video game analyst Serkan Toto of Kantan Games previously suggested that Nintendo’s goal with the lawsuit was to push Pocketpair into a significant out-of-court settlement.

Pocketpair has already updated Palworld, for example by changing the design of its capture spheres. However, a new Nintendo patent could make it much more difficult for other games to copy elements from the Pokémon series in the future.

A popular feature from the video game *Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor*, called the Nemesis system, has a patent that some hoped would soon be available for use in other games. However, Warner Bros. Games still owns the patent, and it won’t expire until at least 2036. This comes after Warner Bros. closed Monolith, the studio that created the Nemesis system and was working on a *Wonder Woman* game.

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2025-09-16 18:39