Pending resolution

The demise of Monolith Productions highlights a rising threat – both real and imagined – of gameplay patents

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Monolith Productions is no more, but the studio's legacy is set to shape the industry long after its HQ is cleared, albeit not for the reason any of its staff might have wanted. The Nemesis system is perhaps Monolith's single biggest contribution to games, presenting a way of tracking enemy NPCs who survive a fight with the player or even defeat them, so that they can return later on with a promotion, new abilities and dialogue referencing the previous encounter.

The concept debuted in 2014's Middle-earth: Shadow Of Mordor, and was planned to return in the now-cancelled Wonder Woman game. But we shouldn't, it seems, expect to see its like again any time soon, since the Nemesis system is protected by a patent that will last long into the future, preventing its use in any other production until at least 2036. Parent company Warner Bros was granted a new continuation as recently as January, and has another pending approval by the US patent office.

This means that Nemesis joins an unloved list of pure gameplay patents (as distinct from more common IP and copyright restrictions) that have loomed over the game industry, largely unnoticed, for the past 30 years. Previous notable examples of the form include minigames in loading screens (originating in 1996's Ridge Racer and expiring in 2015), “ghost cars” in racing games (Hard Drivin', expired in 2020) and games based on rolling things into a ball (Katamari Damacy, expires in 2026).