Japanese developer Pocket Pair has released a new update for Palworld that effectively removes the Pal Spheres from the game. The new v0.3.11 update for the game has removed the ability to summon Pals…
Strange that you can patent a game mechanic in software. What’s next, the superhero landing? The vpose with a bent leg? Running a certain way with a gun between waypoints?
We are still suffering the effects of bad software patents. Tons of garbage patents were granted in the form of “common everyday thing, but on a computer.” A notable one was the digital shopping cart that was eventually invalidated.
A different branch on IP law but for decades Marvel and DC had a shared trademark on “Super Hero”.
If either felt they could argue it was a unique trade identifier they would have claimed it exclusively but instead they claimed shared ownership and used it to lock out competition in the space from 1979 to 2024.
This change is actually really annoying. Being able to summon Pals far from you was great in fights so that you wouldn’t both be in range of the same AoE, and some Pals like Croajiro have have skills that benefit from being able to decide where you place them (Croajiro can act as a launch pad to help you gain height in the early game before you have a flying Pal saddle).
I was cautiously optimistic for Pokémon Legends Z-A but I’m definitely skipping it now, fuck off Nintendo.
I wish they would just switch the spheres for a scroll and mark the summon spot on the ground at point of view with a summoning hex. Also make other scrolls for one off uses for you to use a pal fruit skill.
While I think it’s petty and silly to sue over this I think it’s pathetic that PP couldn’t think of any other way to capture and summon monsters, and that the players kept calling this a pokemon game. There are so many games with tons of monsters you can tame and fight and they don’t look like pokemon ffs. I’m with Nintendo on this one. PP, do better.
I think the patent is about controls more than about the balls, the mechanic would have to work very differently in order to not fall afoul of it. Like maybe if you had to go to the spot and place a mark there, or something, instead of aiming with the control stick, but that would be too clunky to use most of the time.
There is nothing about this game that resembles theft of anyone’s IP in any way, and in a just world an absurd suit like this anywhere on the planet would result in literally every piece of IP a company owns (piercing corporate bullshit) being released to the public domain in the entire world permanently.
This really isn’t that bad, it’s an opportunity to be creative as well. They can replace the balls with anything, say, talismans that they have to stick on the creatures. When summoning them back, they could be reading off of these talismans. It would ironically have more of a Japanese vibe than Pokemon. Other alternatives: for summoning, just replace the balls with curled up miniature versions of the creatures that just expand into size and the capture device can be an artifact that shrinks them and turns them into stone statues you can place in your base. It could go full on occult into summoning circles. They could make it customizable into anything the player chooses as a jab at Nintendo at how worthless their patent is.
The patent isn’t about the balls, it’s about the summoning controls, and it seems broad enough to cover any controls that use a control stick together with buttons to aim a device for summoning a character. It is ridiculously over-broad, and part of a grand tradition of software patents being granted that are more akin to patenting “the idea of doors” than “a specific design for a doorknob.”
That’s why the new control is “press button to summon next to you,” it doesn’t use the stick and thereby avoids the patent. It’s also ass because it doesn’t let you aim the summon, but it is hard to envision a control system for aiming summons that doesn’t use a stick and buttons and also doesn’t suck.
It’s not that bad for this instance, but it’s bad that Nintendo gets to bully companies into submission. Supposedly Poké Balls are inspired by Gashapon so are themselves taking something from someone else (as everything does). Sure, Palworld was especially aggressive with how obvious they were copying them, but I don’t think something so generic should be ownable.
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Strange that you can patent a game mechanic in software. What’s next, the superhero landing? The vpose with a bent leg? Running a certain way with a gun between waypoints?
We are still suffering the effects of bad software patents. Tons of garbage patents were granted in the form of “common everyday thing, but on a computer.” A notable one was the digital shopping cart that was eventually invalidated.
There are no good software patents. The concept should be abolished.
I believe Microsoft has a patent for launching different functions if a button is double clicked versus a single click.
What if they just single click twice, instead of double-clicking?
A different branch on IP law but for decades Marvel and DC had a shared trademark on “Super Hero”.
If either felt they could argue it was a unique trade identifier they would have claimed it exclusively but instead they claimed shared ownership and used it to lock out competition in the space from 1979 to 2024.
make a shitty game in godot with all these things and file for patents before all the big players do
I am copyrighting the T pose for player characters and will sue everybody who ever shows it.
This change is actually really annoying. Being able to summon Pals far from you was great in fights so that you wouldn’t both be in range of the same AoE, and some Pals like Croajiro have have skills that benefit from being able to decide where you place them (Croajiro can act as a launch pad to help you gain height in the early game before you have a flying Pal saddle).
I was cautiously optimistic for Pokémon Legends Z-A but I’m definitely skipping it now, fuck off Nintendo.
I wish they would just switch the spheres for a scroll and mark the summon spot on the ground at point of view with a summoning hex. Also make other scrolls for one off uses for you to use a pal fruit skill.
Also, F Nintendo…
The issue is it’s not a copyright on the ball, it’s a patent on aiming to summon a creature.
a patent that was issued after palworld came out. its a sham
The fact that you can patent shit like this is just dumb as fuck.
Does that mean Nintendo could sue Bethesda because summoning spells in Skyrim have to be aimed?
Damn.
This is how gaming as a category gets ruined.
Use cubes.
Pika pika, mofuggas
Prepare yourself…
for C U B E
Those guys should patent cubes and collecting things.
While I think it’s petty and silly to sue over this I think it’s pathetic that PP couldn’t think of any other way to capture and summon monsters, and that the players kept calling this a pokemon game. There are so many games with tons of monsters you can tame and fight and they don’t look like pokemon ffs. I’m with Nintendo on this one. PP, do better.
I think the patent is about controls more than about the balls, the mechanic would have to work very differently in order to not fall afoul of it. Like maybe if you had to go to the spot and place a mark there, or something, instead of aiming with the control stick, but that would be too clunky to use most of the time.
There is nothing about this game that resembles theft of anyone’s IP in any way, and in a just world an absurd suit like this anywhere on the planet would result in literally every piece of IP a company owns (piercing corporate bullshit) being released to the public domain in the entire world permanently.
found the Nintendo 'saka ninja
This really isn’t that bad, it’s an opportunity to be creative as well. They can replace the balls with anything, say, talismans that they have to stick on the creatures. When summoning them back, they could be reading off of these talismans. It would ironically have more of a Japanese vibe than Pokemon. Other alternatives: for summoning, just replace the balls with curled up miniature versions of the creatures that just expand into size and the capture device can be an artifact that shrinks them and turns them into stone statues you can place in your base. It could go full on occult into summoning circles. They could make it customizable into anything the player chooses as a jab at Nintendo at how worthless their patent is.
The patent isn’t about the balls, it’s about the summoning controls, and it seems broad enough to cover any controls that use a control stick together with buttons to aim a device for summoning a character. It is ridiculously over-broad, and part of a grand tradition of software patents being granted that are more akin to patenting “the idea of doors” than “a specific design for a doorknob.”
That’s why the new control is “press button to summon next to you,” it doesn’t use the stick and thereby avoids the patent. It’s also ass because it doesn’t let you aim the summon, but it is hard to envision a control system for aiming summons that doesn’t use a stick and buttons and also doesn’t suck.
Talismans ≈ sumi-e scrolls? I’m in.
It’s not that bad for this instance, but it’s bad that Nintendo gets to bully companies into submission. Supposedly Poké Balls are inspired by Gashapon so are themselves taking something from someone else (as everything does). Sure, Palworld was especially aggressive with how obvious they were copying them, but I don’t think something so generic should be ownable.
I hope someone mods it back in.
They will.