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Nintendo’s U.S. Patent No. 12,403,397 describes a specific way a summoned sub-character can operate alongside a player character—not summoning in games generally. The USPTO rejected all 26 claims in a non-final action in March 2026, and the docket later recorded Nintendo’s response. That is not a final revocation, and comparisons to FromSoftware or Atlus games do not establish infringement.
What mechanic does the patent describe?
U.S. Patent No. 12,403,397, titled “Storage medium, information processing system, information processing apparatus, and game processing method,” issued on September 2, 2025. Its claims concern a game-processing arrangement involving a player character and a summoned sub-character. The application describes the summoned character moving when no enemy is present and entering battle when specified conditions are met. The patent publication is the source for its claims and description.
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That is narrower than “Nintendo patented summoning.” The relevant subject is the claimed combination of characters and behavior, not every game in which a player calls an ally, companion, or creature. Whether a particular game falls within a patent claim is a legal question that depends on the claim language and the game’s operation; a shared high-level idea alone does not answer it.
Why are FromSoftware and Atlus games mentioned?
The headline reflects comparisons made in surrounding coverage of summon mechanics. Reporting points to Elden Ring and games in the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei series as examples of games with related gameplay concepts. Those are comparisons for context, not a finding that any named game infringes this patent. The patent and the reexamination action do not, by themselves, establish that FromSoftware or Atlus would have to change a game.
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What happened to the patent claims?
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| September 2, 2025 | U.S. Patent No. 12,403,397 issued. |
| November 3, 2025 | A director-initiated ex parte reexamination was ordered. |
| March 25, 2026 | The USPTO mailed a non-final action rejecting claims 1–26 under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a), based on cited prior patent publications. |
| June 25, 2026 | The docket recorded Nintendo’s response after the non-final action and an information disclosure statement. Its displayed status was “Response after Non-Final Action Entered (or Ready for Examiner Action).” |
The examiner’s non-final action states: “Claims 1-26 are rejected under 35 USC § 103(a).” The wording and claim range are reproduced in Nintendo Life’s report on the action. A non-final rejection is an examination decision, not a final ruling that the patent has been revoked. The docket subsequently recorded Nintendo’s response; the available docket entry does not establish what result followed. The docket index, ExamPat, was last updated June 25, 2026.
What prior art did the examiner cite?
The rejection relied on four earlier patent publications:
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- U.S. Publication No. 2020/0254335 A1, attributed in reporting to Taura and Nintendo.
- U.S. Publication No. 2002/0119811 A1, attributed to Yabe and Konami.
- U.S. Publication No. 2022/0062760 A1, attributed to Motokura and Nintendo.
- U.S. Publication No. 2020/0086216 A1, attributed to Shimomoto and Bandai Namco.
The cited documents form the basis of a patentability rejection under § 103. That process assesses claims against prior art; it does not adjudicate whether a commercial game infringes. The rejection and cited publications are discussed in Nintendo Life’s account.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Was Nintendo’s summon-character patent rejected?
Yes: all 26 claims were rejected in the March 25, 2026 non-final reexamination action. But the June 25 docket entry records a response, so the available information supports saying the claims received a non-final rejection—not that the patent was finally revoked or that the response was unsuccessful. A docket index can lag the full official record; the outcome after that entry is not established by the cited status information.
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