Nintendo faces setback as US Patent Office reopens review of key Pokémon battle system patent

Nintendo’s legal dispute with Palworld developer Pocketpair has taken a new turn after the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) ordered a rare re-examination of one of the company’s core patents.

According to GamesFray, USPTO Director John A. Squires intervened on November 3, 2025, to reopen US Patent No. 12,403,397. The patent, initially granted to Nintendo, covers a system that enables a player to “summon a sub-character and let it fight in one of two modes.”

The director’s order, formally titled a Director-Initiated Ex Parte Reexamination, references two earlier patents — one filed by Konami in 2002 and another by Nintendo in 2019 — both of which describe nearly identical mechanics.

The move marks the first such director-initiated review in over a decade, reflecting the level of scrutiny the patent has drawn. Although the review does not immediately revoke the patent, it could result in its cancellation if the cited prior art invalidates its claims.

Nintendo now has two months to respond to the order. Legal analysts cited by GamesFray said the review could lead to the loss of the patent’s key independent claims, potentially rendering it unenforceable.

This comes shortly after Japan’s Patent Office rejected a related Nintendo filing, ruling that its creature-capture system lacked originality. That patent is part of the same family being used in Nintendo and The Pokémon Company’s ongoing lawsuit against Pocketpair in Tokyo District Court, which alleges Palworld infringes on multiple Pokémon-related patents.

While the US and Japanese proceedings are separate, both decisions raise questions about the originality of Nintendo’s patents. The review could further impact the company’s international legal strategy as the Palworld case continues into 2026.