A newly revealed game called Pickmon is already stirring up controversy online, with players accusing it of copying ideas, designs, and even marketing language from several well-known franchises including Pokémon, Palworld, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
The multiplayer survival game recently appeared on Steam as the first non-mobile title from developer PocketGame. But instead of excitement around a new monster-taming adventure, much of the early reaction has focused on how closely the game resembles existing titles, and how little effort some players believe was made to hide those similarities.
Pickmon’s Steam Reveal Immediately Sparked Copycat Claims
According to its Steam page, Pickmon is described as a “multiplayer open-world survival crafter” where players explore a vast continent filled with creatures called Pickmon. Players can team up with these monsters to fight enemies, gather resources, farm land, and build large industrial settlements.
The problem, many observers say, is that the description itself appears strikingly similar to the one used for Palworld, which describes players fighting, farming, building, and working alongside creatures called Pals in an open-world survival crafting game.
Pickmon’s reveal trailer quickly amplified those comparisons. Within seconds, viewers are greeted by gentle piano music that strongly resembles the style used in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, before a blond protagonist who closely resembles Link glides off a cliff over a landscape that looks similar to the Great Plateau starting area.
Trailer Footage Shows Familiar Mechanics And Designs
As the trailer continues, more similarities appear.
The main character travels alongside a creature that strongly resembles Pikachu, while other monsters featured in the footage look similar to well-known Pokémon such as Charizard, Lucario, Ceruledge, Cobalion, and Meganium.
Some creatures are also shown carrying firearms, a mechanic that became widely associated with Palworld when it launched in 2024.
Several gameplay clips show additional mechanics that echo Nintendo titles. Players appear to use a glider to travel across the world, and large towers emitting beams of light into the sky resemble the Sheikah Towers used to reveal the map in Breath of the Wild.
One moment even shows a character riding a creature that transforms between vehicle and monster forms, which some players say resembles rideable Pokémon like Miraidon and Koraidon from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.
Allegations Of Stolen Pokémon Fan Designs
Beyond visual similarities to existing games, Pickmon has also drawn criticism from artists who believe their work was used without permission.
An artist known online as Elpsy claimed on X that one of her fan-created Pokémon designs appeared in the game’s promotional art without credit. The design, a bug and fairy style creature she had named Meganium, is reportedly featured prominently in Pickmon’s key artwork.
Pickmon stole one of my designs! #Pokémon #pokemonart #pokemonfanart pic.twitter.com/ua1za5XzcM
— Elpsy (@ElpsyFake01) March 9, 2026
Other fan artists have also shared examples of fictional Pokémon designs that they believe were copied into the game.
These claims have not yet been publicly addressed by the developers.
Even The Studio Name Has Raised Eyebrows
The developer behind the game, PocketGame, has no previous titles listed on Steam. The game’s publisher, NETWORKGO, previously released a lesser-known fantasy game called Hainya World.
Some observers have pointed out that the studio name PocketGame itself closely resembles Pocketpair, the developer behind Palworld.
At the end of the Pickmon reveal trailer, the studio logo even briefly appears misspelled as “PokeGame,” something viewers quickly noticed and shared across social media.
Pickmon Also Borrows Elements From Other Games
The comparisons do not stop with Pokémon, Zelda, and Palworld.
Some players say characters in the trailer resemble other gaming figures as well, including what appears to be a version of Roadhog from Overwatch. Others have spotted creatures similar to animals from farming games such as Story of Seasons.
The one mechanic that appears slightly different is how players capture monsters. Instead of using Poké Ball style items, Pickmon uses cards to tame creatures.
While that small change might help distinguish the mechanic on paper, most reactions online suggest it has not done much to convince players that the game offers something genuinely new.
Questions Around Pickmon’s Summer Game Fest Claim
The reveal trailer also claims Pickmon is part of Summer Game Fest 2026, although the event is still months away and organiser Geoff Keighley has not mentioned the game publicly.
That has raised additional questions about the project, including whether the trailer was officially associated with the event or simply used the branding.
The developers are currently encouraging streamers and content creators to contact them to participate in an early access experience ahead of the game’s planned public early access launch in 2027.
Nintendo’s Ongoing Legal Battles Add More Context
The Pickmon controversy arrives while Nintendo is already engaged in legal disputes involving monster-catching mechanics.
The company filed a lawsuit against Palworld developer Pocketpair in late 2024, arguing the game infringed on patents related to monster summoning mechanics associated with Pokémon.
However, the legal situation has grown complicated. Japanese authorities rejected Nintendo’s attempt to patent certain Pokémon-style capture systems in 2025, and the United States Patent and Trademark Office later re-examined one of Nintendo’s previously granted patents.
Nintendo is also currently involved in a separate legal battle over tariffs imposed on imported products in the United States.
Even with those cases ongoing, the company has historically been very aggressive when defending its intellectual property. That reputation has led many players to speculate that Pickmon could eventually face legal scrutiny if it continues development.
For now, the game remains listed on Steam with early access expected sometime in 2027.