Pokemon reaches settlement in lawsuit over mobile game "Pocket Monster: Remake," operators "sincerely apologize" and say they've "learned our lessons"

The Pokemon Company has reached a "mediated settlement" with the operators of a mobile game, which it previously filed a lawsuit against in China for alleged intellectual property rights infringement.

The game itself, known as Pocket Monster: Remake, or The Pocket Journey (it was also referred to in previous reports as Pocket Monster Reissue) has been running since 2015, and Automaton reports that it featured designs that were allegedly a bit too similar to existing Pokemon characters, from anime protag Ash or certain creatures themselves. Now, though, a settlement has been reached with game operators Guangzhou Maichi Network Technology Co., Ltd. and Khorgos Fangchi Network Technology Co., Ltd., which have also issued a joint public apology to The Pokemon Company.

In the official, translated apology, the operators say their game "has extensively used design elements of the well-known Pokemon video game series, infringing the copyrights related to the Pokemon video games, and has unfairly taken advantage of the fame and reputation of the Pokemon video games, thereby constituting acts of unfair competition." This in turn "caused significant economic losses to the rights holders and severely damaged the image of the original Pokemon video games," the apology continues.

"We hereby sincerely apologize to TPC and other rights holders, as well as the vast number of players, consumers, and the general public. The game has now been completely removed from the market and operations have ceased. At the same time, we have paid a substantial economic price and incurred significant reputational damage. We have deeply reflected on it and learned our lessons."

It's not clear what that "substantial economic price" is – back in September last year, it was reported that one of the companies involved was being ordered to pay around $15 million in damages, but the apology states that the companies have "reached a settlement on the issue of compensation."

Wrapping up its own statement, The Pokemon Company says it "will continue to take all necessary steps to protect its intellectual properties, to enable its users worldwide to enjoy all Pokemon contents with complete peace of mind."

Be sure to check out our ranking of the best Pokemon games to see our picks for the best RPGs in the series.