Nintendo's patent infringement lawsuit against Palworld developer Pocketpair has hit a significant hurdle. A core pillar of their claim—specifically the 'character summoning and combat mechanism'—has seen its patent rejected in the United States, casting doubt on their future legal prospects.

Various North American outlets reported on the 1st that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued a 'non-final rejection' for all 26 claims regarding Nintendo's system for summoning auxiliary characters to battle enemies (US 12,403,397).

While the patent was initially granted in September of last year, it caught the attention of USPTO Director John A. Squires, who took the extraordinary step of ordering an ex officio re-examination, kicking off a review process that began in November. Nintendo did not respond within the designated window, leading the examining body to issue a non-final rejection for every claim within the patent.

The primary reason for this decision is that the technology is considered a combination of existing techniques rather than a new innovation. Four pieces of prior art were cited as evidence, including two from Nintendo, one from Konami, and one from Bandai Namco. The examiners noted that developers could have easily derived this invention by combining these pre-existing technologies.

Nintendo is now in a position where it must prove the validity of the patent again. They have a two-month window to file a rebuttal against the examiner’s findings or request a further re-examination.

Meanwhile, this ruling is expected to have a significant impact on the ongoing legal battle with Pocketpair. Pocketpair has been actively expanding the Palworld IP, including recent collaborations with Sony.