First Palworld Pokemon Mod Taken Down by Nintendo

23.01.2024 - 19:07 / gamerant.com / Dominik Bo / Nintendo

Nintendo has cracked down on the first Pokemon mod for Palworld. The copyright-infringing mod that adds both Pokemon creatures and characters to Palworld was first teased by its creator yesterday, January 22.

Given how PocketPair's newest title has seemingly been envisioned as a parody of Pokemon, unofficial community content that adds actual pocket monsters to the hit survival game was only a question of time. But that time arrived even earlier than many had expected, with Australian YouTuber ToastedShoes taking mere days to put together a prototype mod that replaced Palworld's Pals with Pokemon.

Nintendo wasted no time in cracking down on ToastedShoes' initial teaser of the mod, which has already been removed from Twitter following a DMCA takedown notice, as per the YouTuber's own admission. Yet that turn of events did not discourage ToastedShoes from showcasing his work. On the contrary, the content creator just made good on his promise to post an extensive video of the mod. But the 16-minute clip that emerged on his YouTube channel on January 23 is likely going to get taken down soon as well.

The very act of posting the video brought ToastedShoes closer to the possibility of having his account banned. According to YouTube's terms of use, receiving three copyright strikes subjects one's channel to termination and prohibits them from creating new channels. That fact was not lost on many of the content creator's followers, who took to his latest video's comment section to praise ToastedShoes for his bravery. «The hero we don't deserve,» wrote one YouTube user, while another one proclaimed that «history will remember» ToastedShoes for being so daring at the height of the Palworld vs Pokemon controversy.

Despite being unbothered by the idea of risking his YouTube account with copyright-infringing content, the Australian internet personality doesn't appear keen to keep poking the Nintendo bear using different means. Specifically, ToastedShoes has just taken to Twitter to state that his mod won't be releasing anytime soon, if ever. Elaborating on that point, the YouTuber said he wants to «tread lightly» due to the swift and decisive manner in which Nintendo reacted to his initial Twitter post teasing the Palworld Pokemon mod.

The game itself has so far avoided legal issues with Nintendo and other Pokemon IP stakeholders. But whether that remains the case moving forward remains to be seen. After all, even The Pokemon Company's ex-Chief Legal Officer has recently described Palworld as «ripoff nonsense» that he used to deal with on a daily basis, albeit without outright stating the game offers grounds for a copyright infringement lawsuit.

Pocket Pair's Palworld is a creature-collection game set in an open-world.