Nintendo and The Pokemon Company have been issued a patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) covering the mechanic of summoning a character to battle an enemy by throwing a ball.
As clocked by GamesFray, the USPTO issued the patent (No. 12,403,397) on September 2,2025, without any objection. Nintendo filed the patent application in March 2023.
Nintendo was also granted another patent (No. 12,409,387) related to a mechanism that enables the “smooth switch or riding of objects.”
It’s a notable development given Nintendo and The Pokemon Company are currently suing Palworld developer Pocketpair over allegations of patent infringement concerning gameplay mechanics encompassing the collection and riding of characters.
It’s important to note that Nintendo could now litigate against other developers it believes are infringing on its patents—not just Pocketpair.
Patent ‘397 describes (in rather complex terms) battles that will be familiar to most Pokemon players. It also features a number of explanatory graphics, like the one in our header image.
Back in May, Pocketpair altered certain Palworld mechanics—such as the ability to summon ‘Pals’ by throwing ‘Pal Spheres’ (that action now takes the form of a static summon)—to prevent “prevent further disruptions to the development of Palworld.”
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When announcing those tweaks, Pocketpair didn’t mention Nintendo but confirmed it had to made certain “compromises” after the lawsuit was filed.
“Currently, we remain involved in prolonged legal proceedings regarding alleged patent infringement,” read the statement. “We continue to dispute these claims and assert the invalidity of the patents in question. However, we have had to make certain compromises in order to avoid disruptions to the development and distribution of Palworld.”
Update: This article was updated shortly after publication to clarify the summoning mechanic patented by Nintendo centres on players throwing a ball to capture and deploy characters, as seen in Pokémon.