It was only a few weeks ago that reports came out of a potential sale of Niantic's gaming division to a new company. Now, confirmation has emerged, with a whopping $3.5 billion deal being struck between Niantic and Scopely, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia's Savvy Games Group, to transfer all mobile games as well as their development teams.
Announced today by Scopely, the acquisition sees the transfer of the rights for the global hit Pokémon GO, alongside other titles such as Pikmin Bloom, Monster Hunter Now, and their companion apps and services.
Niantic's gaming business is said to bring in over 30 million monthly players even now, with $1 billion of revenue being shown in 2024. Despite Pokémon GO's reduced popularity since its exceptional launch numbers, the mobile title is reportedly pulling in over 20 million weekly players still and crossed the 100 million total players mark in 2024.
"Scopely has always been focused on cultivating meaningful communities through a shared love of play, and the Niantic games organization is one of the best in the world at this endeavor. We are extremely inspired by what the team has built over the last decade, delivering innovative experiences that captivate a vast, enduring global audience and get people out in the real world. We look forward to further accelerating the team’s creativity through our partnership," said Tim O’Brien, Chief Revenue Officer and Board Member of Scopely, in a statement.
Niantic was one of the game development companies that was hit by major layoffs in recent years. Over 230 staff were laid off in 2023 alone, and a major Marvel-based AR game was also canceled.
For now at least, it doesn't look like the acquisition will result in any downsizing. Today's announcement says the entire team of Niantic's gaming division will join Scopely alongside the long-time game studio leaders Kei Kawai and Ed Wu.
"Scopely shares our focus on building and operating incredible live services, has exceptional experience working with the world's biggest and most beloved intellectual properties, and cares deeply about its player communities and game-making teams," said John Hanke, founder and CEO of Niantic. "I firmly believe this partnership is great for our players and is the best way to ensure that our games have the long-term support and investment needed to be 'forever games' that will endure for future generations."
It's unclear how the games of Niantic will change under the new ownership, but if there are any major overhauls planned, it may be a while before players get to see them.
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