Pokemon-Palworld Clone Pickmos Pulled From Steam With “Controversy-Free” Rework Promise
While many believed that Pickmos was flaunting its similarities between Palword and Pokémon, it seems like the publisher isn’t a fan of the controversy. The monster-taming clone of the two games has claimed that they want to make a “controversy-free” rework after Pickmos was pulled from Steam.
Game Renaming Announcement:The Evolution of Pickmos
— Pickmos / Pickmon / ピックモス (@PickMon_EN) April 10, 2026
Dear Players,
Since the beginning of development,
we have been dedicated to building
a unique and profound ecological world.
To better align with our brand identity and lore,
our title is officially changing:… pic.twitter.com/3sgnTkvbTd
Earlier this week, developer PocketGame announced that it was changing the name of its survival-crafting creature-collecting game from Pickmons to Pickmos. Even with the slight name change, the game shared quite a resemblance to Pokémon and Palworld. And with the legal battle between Pokémon and the seemingly clone, Palworld, Pickmos was heavily criticised upon release.
It seems like the criticism was so heavy that its publisher, Networkgo, decided to pull Pickmos from Steam completely, with an update that they’ll be taking a more active hand in the development. “We’ve heard your feedback regarding the removal of our Steam store page and want to clear things up,” the publisher wrote. “Networkgo has officially intervened in the development of Pickmos. We will be supervising the PocketGame team from a player’s perspective to ensure the game keeps getting better.”
Pickmos added to this on April 16 in a post on X, saying they are “revising the game to ensure a controversy-free experience. It will be re-released once our publisher gives the final approval.”
We are revising the game to ensure a controversy-free experience. It will be re-released once our publisher gives the final approval.
— Pickmos / Pickmon / ピックモス (@PickMon_EN) April 16, 2026
Since its reveal, Pickmos has been accused of being a direct rip-off of Pokémon, with many believing that it had to be a joke due to how similar the creature designs were to the classic Nintendo game. Along with that, the game seemed to steal “Fakemon” designs, which are fake, fan-designed Pokémon.
In the comments from Pickmos‘ post regarding the rework, one commented a picture of one of the Fakemon that Pickmos is accused of stealing, asking, “Will we get a response from the publishers regarding this stolen art?” Pickmos’s account replied, saying they’re currently gathering information.
Will we get a response from the publishers regarding the stolen art? pic.twitter.com/c871mIv9ri
— ♦️CroadNation♦️ (@Croad_Nation) April 17, 2026
A few other comments have bashed Pickmos, saying that they should delete the project entirely. The general discussion on Steam about the game is not positive either, with many saying that there’s nothing original in the game, it’s just stolen concepts.
One commented on the Steam discussion saying, “At least the majority of Pals looked like their own thing, with the exception of egyptian lucario, grass Cinderace and a couple others. These just look like regional variants of Pals and Pokémon.”
While Nintendo’s Pokémon-style battle patent was rejected, the similarities between the games could easily cause Nintendo to sue Pickmos. Hopefully, PocketGame reworks the game entirely with new designs or goes down a different direction. The negative reactions amongst gamers, as well as the blatant copying of designs, might have solidified the end of Pickmos before it even began.
