The Pokemon Company is suing six Chinese companies over one Pokemon clone

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'Pocket Monster Reissue' has clear similarities to Pokemon

pokemon Go april fools event
(Image credit: Niantic)

The Pokemon Company is attempting to sue six companies in China due to copyright infringement for a very Pokemon-like game currently available on mobile. 

As reported by The South China Morning Post, The Pokemon Company is suing six Chinese companies for copyright infringement and "unfair competition behaviour" due to a mobile game known as 'Pocket Monster Reissue' that bares a striking resemblance to the Pokemon IP. 

According to the original article, The Pokemon Company has applied for a court order to stop the development, distribution, operation, and promotion of Pocket Monster Reissue and is claiming 500 million yuan ($72.5 million) in damages from the China-based companies in question. It is also demanding that the app’s developers all issue public apologies on popular Chinese websites and social media platforms such as Tencent.com and NetEase. 

You can see why the mobile game has caught The Pokemon Company's attention, as a screenshot on digital storefronts contains images of Ash Ketchum, Oshawott, Tepig, and the company’s mascot Pikachu - without any major alterations or changes made to the designs. 

The original article states that Pocket Monster Reissue has been available to download (without Nintendo's permission) since 2015, with one of the companies responsible for it Zhongnan Heavy Industries’ financial report from 2016 claiming that the game made "more than 300 million yuan of total turnover" just a year after it was released. 

In more positive Pokemon news, the next mainline games in the long-running series, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, are due to release in just a couple of months now. After initially being revealed at the start of the year, The Pokemon Company has ramped up promotion for the gen nine games ahead of their November 18, 2022 release date.

In fact, earlier today The Pokemon Company officially unveiled a brand new poison-type Pokemon called Grafaiai, which looks like it has been inspired by graffiti and the Madagascan animal the aye-aye. 

Looking for something to play while we wait for Scarlet and Violet? Take a look at our list of the best Pokemon games for inspiration. 

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Hope Bellingham
Hope Bellingham
News Writer

After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training.  My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.  

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