Palworld, the open-world crafting game often described as "Pokémon with guns", surprise-launched on the PlayStation 5 on Sept. 24, following Sony Group Corp.‘s (NYSE:SONY) State of Play broadcast.

Gamers from 68 countries eagerly downloaded the long-awaited release, but fans in Japan were left in the dark. Despite the global excitement, Japanese players found themselves unable to access the game.

See Also: Nintendo’s ‘Killer Patent’ Could Crush Palworld’s Monster-Catching Gameplay, Expert Warns

Palworld PS5 Block In Japan

Pocketpair, the Japanese developer behind Palworld, took to X (formerly Twitter) to address the situation. The official Japanese Palworld account confirmed that the PS5 release in Japan "has not yet been decided," offering no further explanation for the delay.

“We apologize to everyone in Japan who was looking forward to it, but all of our staff will do our best to deliver it to PS5 users as soon as possible, so we hope you will wait for a little longer. We look forward to your continued support of Palworld.”

The developer stopped short of specifying the reason behind the delay. But many suspect it is linked to a recent lawsuit filed by Nintendo ADR (OTC:NTDOY) and The Pokémon Company against Pocketpair. The case, which was filed in the Tokyo District Court, accuses the developer of infringing on Pokémon-related patents.

The Legal Battle: Pokémon Vs. Palworld

Industry insiders believe that the legal dispute centers around a "killer patent" tied to the mechanics of catching creatures—a key gameplay feature in both Pokémon and Palworld.

In Palworld, players can capture creatures using a ball-like object called a Pal Sphere, a concept that is strikingly similar to the capturing mechanic seen in Pokémon Legends: Arceus.

Pocketpair responded to the lawsuit with a public statement, claiming they were unaware of the specific patents they allegedly infringed upon.

For now, Palworld remains available on all previously supported platforms, including Xbox and PC via Steam. The game is also still part of Microsoft’s Game Pass subscription service.

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• Palworld’ Success Overwhelms: ‘Too Big for Our Studio,’ But Pocketpair Open To Acquisitions

Image credits: Shutterstock.