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ARTICLE · 28 NOVEMBER 2023

Protecting Video Game Developers Through Mechanics Patents

Heslin Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti
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Fears over the granting of broad patents concerning game mechanics are likely overstated because prosecution of game mechanics are uniquely disadvantaged.

United StatesIntellectual Property
Arjay Parhar
Arjay Parhar

When the highly anticipated video game, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, was released earlier this year, the gaming website Automaton found 31 video game mechanics patents that Nintendo filed that caused "an outcry of fans claiming Nintendo has overstepped their boundaries and is restricting creative freedom due to the broad nature of some of these patents." (Philip Proctor, Nintendo releases large number of patents related to Tears of the Kingdom, Zelda Universe (Aug. 11, 2023), https://zeldauniverse.net/2023/08/11/nintendo-releases-large-number-of-patents-related-to-tears-of-the-kingdom/). Video game enthusiasts worried that these patents could "create a minefield for other developers to navigate when wanting similar mechanics in their future games." Id. Are consumers right to worry that patenting broad game mechanics is going to stifle innovation in the video game industry?

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