When it comes to copyright suits or conflicts that never should have existed, one of the most common misunderstandings that births them is not understanding the idea/expression dichotomy in copyright law. Even to most laypeople, once you explain it, it’s quite simple. You can copyright a specific expression of something, such as literature, recorded music, etc., but you cannot copyright a general idea. So, while Superman may be subject to copyright protections as a character and in depictions of that character, you cannot copyright a superhero that flies, wears a cape, shoots beams from his eyes, and has super strength. For evidence of that, see: Homelander from The Boys.
But while Homelander is a good case study in the protections offered by the idea/expression dichotomy, a more perfect one might be the recently released PC game Palworld, which has often been described as “Pokémon, but with guns.” This thing is a megahit already, hitting Early Access mid-January and also already hitting 1 million concurrent players. And if you’re wondering just how “Pokémon, but with guns” this game is, well…
The art styles are similar, it’s essentially a monster-collecting game involving battles, etc. and so on. You get it. And this has led to a whole lot of speculation out there that all of this somehow constitutes copyright infringement, or plagiarism, on the part of publisher PocketPair. There is likewise speculation that it’s only a matter of time before Nintendo, Game Freak, or The Pokémon Co. sues the hell out of PocketPair over all of this.
And that may still happen — the Pokemon company says it’s investigating Palworld. All of those companies have shown themselves to be voracious IP enforcers, after all. But the fact is that there is nothing in this game that is a direct copy of any expression owned by any of those entities. To that end, when asked about any concerns over lawsuits, PocketPair is taking a very confident posture.
On the other hand, we had a chance to talk to PocketPair’s CEO Takuro Mizobe before Palworld’s release, and addressing this topic, Mizobe mentioned that Palworld has cleared legal reviews, and that there has been no action taken against it by other companies. Mizobe shared PocketPair’s stance on the issue, stating, “We make our games very seriously, and we have absolutely no intention of infringing upon the intellectual property of other companies.”
Mizobe has also commented that, in his personal opinion, Palworld is not at all that similar to Pokémon, even citing other IPs that Palworld more closely resembles. (Related article) He encouraged users to see past the rumors and give Palworld a chance.
And he’s right. The game mechanics themselves go far beyond anything Pokémon has on offer. And while we can certainly say that even some of the Pals themselves look as though they were inspired by some well-known Pokémon, there are more than enough differences in sum-total to make any claim that this is some kind of direct ripoff simply untrue. Some of the ideas are very, very similar. The expression, however, is different.
In addition to the legal review that Mizobe mentioned, it’s not like the game as a concept has been kept a secret, either.
Though it released just a few days ago, Palworld’s concept and content has been open to the public for quite a while, and were even presented at the Tokyo Game Show in both 2022 and 2023. Many users are of the opinion that, if there were basis for plagiarism-related legal action, the relevant parties would have already acted by now.
I would normally agree, but in this case, well, it’s Pokémon and Nintendo, so who knows. Maybe legal action is coming, maybe not. If it does come, however, it should fail. And fail miserably. All because of the idea/expression dichotomy.
It’s quite fortunate that Palworld has sold millions of copies quickly, because that means they should have the funds to withstand a legal onslaught from Nintendo. In justice it’s not often if you are right, but if you are rich.
Robin Edgar
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