Palworld update removes gliding with Pals due to Nintendo lawsuit

Palworld update 0.5.5 has been released on May 8, 2025, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S, and removed the ability to use Pals for gliding. Instead, players will now be confined to using regular gliders for airborne movement. Pals that previously supported gliding will offer passive bonuses while in the air.

Accompanying the patch notes was a statement by developer Pocketpair, which went into the reasons behind this change and previous updates that removed Pal Spheres from the game, among other mechanical adjustments.

According to Pocketpair, these changes had to be made due to Nintendo’s ongoing lawsuit against the company for alleged patent infringement.

“We continue to dispute these claims and assert the invalidity of the patents in question. However, we have had to make certain compromises in order to avoid disruptions to the development and distribution of Palworld,” the company wrote.

“As many have speculated, these changes were indeed a result of the ongoing litigation,” Pocketpair stated in reference to today’s update as well as patches from last year. “Everyone here at Pocketpair was disappointed that this adjustment had to be made, and we fully understand that many players feel the same frustration. Unfortunately, as the alternative would have led to an even greater deterioration of the gameplay experience for players, it was determined that this change was necessary.”

Pocketpair also apologized for not being more transparent earlier: “We would like to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation for the continued support of our fans over the past few months. We apologize for not being able to share as much information as we would like, but we trust our fans understand how difficult it is to be fully transparent while litigation is ongoing.”

Nintendo’s lawsuit aims to completely stop the distribution of Palworld around the globe and force Pocketpair to pay damages for its alleged patent law violations. Pocketpair, in return, is disputing the validity of the patents Nintendo has accused it of infringing upon, because they were either refreshed or modified following the game’s release.

More news on DBLTAP: