Palworld's Card Game: A Red Rag to Nintendo's Legal Bull?

Pocketpair’s Palworld is already embroiled in a lawsuit with Nintendo over alleged similarities to Pokémon. Now, the studio has announced a July 30 release for Palworld Official Card Game, a 2-player competitive title where players “gather resources, build bases, and deploy Pals” to win.

The game’s description reads like a near-direct lift from Pokémon TCG’s core mechanics—swap “Pokémon” for “Pals,” and the overlap is uncanny. Legal analysts have called the timing “deliberately poking the bear,” with one noting it would be a “phenomenally bad idea” to escalate tensions during active litigation.

Despite the risk, Pocketpair has not altered the game’s design or delayed the release. The card game’s existence now adds another layer to a dispute that has already seen Nintendo demand changes to Palworld’s core loop and branding.