In a shocking move, the United States Patent and Trademark Office has decided to reexamine a patent it granted to Nintendo less than two months ago. The order, dated November 3, 2025, targets Nintendo’s U.S. Patent No. 12,403,397. The patent is for the mechanic of summoning a subcharacter to battle either manually or automatically.
The decision, initiated by USPTO Director John A. Squires, marks a rare instance of the agency revisiting its decision to approve a patent without an outside petition.
The reexamination strikes at the core of Nintendo’s lawsuit against Palworld developer PocketPair. While the patent hasn’t been revoked yet, the fact that its validity is being questioned is a major blow to Nintendo’s legal strategy.
A Patent the USPTO Never Should Have Approved
The ‘397 patent was granted “without any objection” in September 2025.
IP lawyers criticized the approval as an embarrassing overreach by the patent system. Gamers expressed anger at Nintendo’s attempts to weaponize the patent system. There’s been a lot of concern that the ‘397 patent would create a dangerous precedent. One where developers have to avoid using certain mechanics in their games to avoid litigation.
Squires’s order points to two older patents for nearly identical mechanics. One was filed by Konami in 2002 and another by Nintendo itself in 2019. These prior art references were strong enough to warrant reexamination of the patent’s key independent claims (claims 1, 13, 25, and 26).
If those claims fall, the remaining claims for the patent will fall as well.
Why This Move Is So Unusual
Normally, a company facing litigation (like PocketPair) would request an ex parte reexamination. This case is different. The USPTO initiated the review on its own, a step so rare that it hasn’t happened in over a decade.
The last confirmed Director-Initiated Reexamination was in 2012. That’s how extraordinary this is.
It’s also notable because since his appointment, Squires has refused to challenge patents. In fact, his first major intervention revived a canceled patent, implying he favors stronger IP protection. The backlash and negative publicity the USPTO got for approving the ‘397 patent seems to have hit a nerve.
Global Scrutiny on Nintendo’s Patents
Just days before the USPTO’s announcement, the Japan Patent Office (JPO) rejected one of Nintendo’s related patent applications, citing prior art from games like ARK: Survival Evolved.
With both the U.S. and Japan’s top patent authorities questioning Nintendo’s filings, the company’s legal assault against Pocketpair is looking flimsy.
Nintendo has accused Palworld of infringing three separate patents. They framed their lawsuit as defending unique mechanics found in their Pokémon gamers. Now two of the world’s most respected patent offices are saying Nintendo’s patents aren’t that unique.
Nintendo Never Had a Strong Case
Nintendo’s legal offensive was an attempt to intimidate a smaller publisher while establishing itself as the top monster-capture franchise in the genre.
Even if the patent somehow survives, the damage to Nintendo’s reputation is already done. Everything about Nintendo’s actions has become an example of corporate overreach.
While no one knows whether the USPTO will revoke the patent, it’s still a huge blow to Nintendo’s legal strategy. Nintendo never had a strong case against Palworld. The company assumed that no one would push back. Now, the Japanese and American patent systems are doing exactly that.
