Pokémon Special – Presentation Discussion Outline

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the world of Pokémon…lawsuits!

We (Celine, Chloe, Clara, Jenny, Scott, and Victoria) are excited to bring you our discussion outline for our presentation next Tuesday. As you may have guessed, our presentation will feature Nintendo and the various cases and legal questions that have emerged around Nintendo’s popular franchise Pokémon.

We have prepared a set of slides for you to download and view in advance here: VGL Presentation Deck

A text version of the information is also provided in this post. We hope to discuss the questions listed below at the end in class. Looking forward to seeing you all on Tuesday!

Case Notes

• Pokemon Uranium
  • Background Information
    • Pokémon Uranium is one of the most famous fan-made Pokémon games, featuring a completely original region, storyline, and over 160 new species.
    • After 9 years of development, the game was downloaded over 1.5 million times in its first week of release, and was nominated for “Best Fan Creation” at the 2016 Game Awards.
  • Action Taken by Nintendo
    • Nintendo issued DMCA takedown notices to websites offering the download.
  • Result
    • While never actually contacted by Nintendo themselves, the developers took down their own game to “respect Nintendo’s wishes” after learning that other websites offering the game had received the takedown notices.
• Pokemon Prism
  • Background Information
    • ROM hack created by Adam “Koolboyman” Vierra.
    • Took 8 years to create.
    • The game follows Prism, who finds themselves in Naljo, a developing region bent on the dream of purist industrialization.
  • Action Taken by Nintendo
    • On December 21, 2016, Nintendo sent Vierra a cease and desist letter.
  •  Result
    • Vierra complied with the cease and desist letter.
    • Although, game was made available via 4chan and currently available for download via RainbowDevs.
• Relic Castle
  • Background Information
    • Internet forum dedicated to the discussion and sharing of Pokemon fan games.
    • The website did not directly host fan games. Instead, Relic Castle allowed direct download links to be posted.
  • Action Taken by Nintendo
    • In 2024 a DMCA takedown was issued to Relic Castle.
  •  Result
    • The owner of Relic Castle shut the entire website down in Mar-2024 due to the DMCA takedown.

• Palworld

• • Background Information
    • Open-world survival game created by Tokyo-based company Pocketpair
    • Many mechanisms in Palworld resemble Pokemon and Palworld is nicknamed “Pokemon with guns” pre-release.
  • Action Taken by Nintendo
    • In September, 2024, Nintendo filed a claim in Tokyo District Court alleging infringement of 3 game mechanic patents
  • Result
    • Case has yet to be decided
    • Palworld made changes to its gameplay mechanics after Nintendo filed suit
    • Patent claims restricted to Japan

• Pixelmon

• • Background Information
    • Pokemon mod developed for Minecraft in 2013
    • Adds Pokemon into the game, as well as battling, trading, and breeding mechanics
  • Action Taken by Nintendo
    • On July 14, 2017, the Pixelmon team posted that they were ending development “after a request from the Pokemon company”, subsequently discontinuing the mod and pulling all downloads.
  • Result
    • Message announcing the end of the mod was taken down around February 2019, with the mod quietly resuming activity by June 2020

• Tracer AI
  • Background Information – What is Tracer AI?
    • “Human-In-The-Loop” brand protection solution
    • AI constantly scans the internet for copyright infringing material on behalf of the client
    • Makes recommendations and issues DMCA Takedown notices if approved
    • New ‘Flora’ agent reduces level of necessary human intervention
    • Indicates shift to automated copyright enforcement?
  • Case 1 – Giratina Strikes Back
    • Background 
      • ROM hack of Pokémon Ruby that featured crossovers with Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
      • Got its start in 2011
    • Action Taken 
      • DMCA Takedown notice issued by Tracer AI
    • Result
      • Taken down in 2022
  • Case 2 – Pokemon Glazed
    • Background
      • ROM hack of Pokémon Emerald
      • Released in 2012
      • Features a new region (Johto Region)
    • Action Taken
      • DMCA Takedown notice issued by Tracer AI
    • Result
      • Taken down in 2022
  • Case 3 – Pokemon Stranded
    • Background
      • ROM Hack of Pokémon FireRed
      • Open-world Pokémon game where you are stranded on an island and use Pokémon to escape
    • Action Taken
      • DMCA Takedown notice issued by Tracer AI
    • Result
      • Taken down in 2022

Discussion Questions

1. Pokemon Uranium: Should IP laws be updated to better accommodate fan-made content? What could that system look like?
2. Pokemon Prism: how do cease and desist actions against fan-made games impact the gaming community, and do they help or harm a franchise’s long-term success?
3. Relic Castle: How do community-run internet forums realistically resolve a DMCA takedown when the infringing content is likely pervasive? Should Nintendo view sites like Relic Castle as “distributors” of potentially infringing content?
4. Palworld: do gameplay mechanism patents stifle creativity? What do you think the outcome of Nintendo’s lawsuit against Palworld will be?
5. Pixelmon: What do you think about the rise of the “game as a platform”/”game within a game” phenomenon? Could the “platform” game be held liable if a game within it is found to infringe copyright?
6. Tracer AI: What do you think about AI to automatically detect copyright infringing material, especially considering how it affects the balance between copyright owner’s rights on one hand and an artist’s rights on the other?