Pocketpair has announced that it’s removing yet another feature in v0.5.5 as a compromise with Nintendo as the two companies have been engaged in a legal battle over what Nintendo claims are patent infringements in Palworld.
Now, players will no longer be able to glide with their Pals. Players will still be able to glide, they’ll just need to craft and use a glider that’s in their inventory. Pals that were originally able to be used as Gliders will now give buffs while gliding instead.
According to an announcement on Palworld’s official Discord server, this change was made because of the legal proceedings. The patent infringement claims from Nintendo would point to Patent No. 7528390, which specifically discusses rideable characters.
Pocketpair also explained that this isn’t the first change that’s happened as a compromise between itself and Nintendo.
Back in November, v0.3.11 removed the ability to summon Pals with Pal Spheres. Instead, they summon directly beside the player. Other smaller gameplay elements were also adjusted at that time.
Pocketpair explained that it’s been disappointed in the changes from v0.3.11 and v0.5.5, but not implementing them would cause even more problems for Palworld players. The goal is for Pocketpair to navigate the lawsuit from Nintendo with as little disruption to players as possible.
The developer did apologize to fans for the ongoing concern and instability that the litigation has brought about.
Despite the ongoing legal battle between Nintendo and Pocketpair, Palworld has seen a lot of success. It was released on PlayStation 5 in Japan after Nintendo filed its lawsuit. Palworld also revealed that it’s had over 32 million players back in February, on the first anniversary of the game.
