Pokémon Go developer Niantic has finally opened up about its recent acquisition, assuring its staff as well as players that the tentpole franchise will “not undergo any major changes” after Niantic was sold to Saudi-backed Monopoly Go maker Scopely as part of a $3.5bn deal last month.
In a general all-hands meeting that united both companies last week in Japan, Niantic representatives sought to assuage concerns, insisting that Scopely bought Niantic because of the success of its games, not because it wants to change them.
“The direction of our game will not undergo any major changes under the influence of Scopely,” a Niantic spokesperson told those at the meeting, as reported by ITMedia (thanks, Automaton).
“[Scopely] will just be supporting its further improvement, and we will keep doing what we’ve been doing since the beginning. To put it more bluntly – please rest assured that we will not be shutting down the game.”
The Niantic exec said there was nothing else to announce at this time, but did hint that the company will continue to “evolve” Pokémon Go over time.
As Tom recently summarised for us, Pokémon Go fans had expressed deep concern over Scopely’s acquisition of the game, after word of the deal leaked online. The hugely-popular mobile game has over 20 million weekly active players, with an average of 40 minutes daily playtime, and is set to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2026.
