Palworld escapes indefinite delay, launches on PS5 in Japan today despite the survival game's ongoing legal battle with Nintendo
Oct. 4, 2024It launched on PS5 in 68 other countries last week
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Little over a week after shadow dropping in 68 countries,Palworldhas landed on PS5 in Japan, putting a swift end to an indefinite delay.
Palworld launched on PS5worldwide following last week’sPlayStation State of Play, but at the time, Pocketpair told fans on social media that therelease date in Japan had “not yet been decided.“It apologized for the wait but promised to do its best to release the game “as soon as possible,” and today, that’s just what it’s done.
Once again saying sorry for keeping fans waiting, the devs confirm (translated byGoogleand DeepL) that the PS5 version will continue to get “large-scale updates” going forward, too. With no further explanation of the delay given, the situation remains somewhat perplexing since Palworld was already out in Japan on both PC and Xbox consoles, but it’s worth pointing out that the PS5 launch arrived right on the back of Nintendo andThe Pokemon Companyfiling apatent infringement lawsuitagainst the developer in Japan.
It’s still not been publicly announced what patents Pocketpair has allegedly infringed upon, but the lawsuit is still very much ongoing. It was only announced last month, after all, and oneIP expert has predicted that it’s more likely to last for five yearsthan wrap up in the first one. Even so, between the PS5 release and the announcement just this week thatPUBG’s studio is set to bring the Palworld IP to mobile, Pocketpair doesn’t seem to be slowing down with its survival hit.
Nintendo’s Pokeball patent could be at the heart of its Palworld lawsuit, and judging by a 29-year-old precedent it could change monster-collecting RPGs for decades.
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I’m one of GamesRadar+’s news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield’s student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming’s news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you’re sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.
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