The speculation is over: Niantic and Pokémon GO have been sold to Scopely. The new owners are directly commenting on the next steps.
How did the sale come about? The developers of Pokémon GO have now been acquired by the company Scopely. The company was founded in 2011 in Los Angeles and was taken over by the Savvy Games Group for 4.9 billion dollars in July 2023. This is a company that belongs to Saudi Arabia. The manufacturer is most likely known to many through its game Monopoly Go.
A few weeks ago, there were reports that the acquisition by Scopely was allegedly in progress for 3.5 billion US dollars. Scopely has now confirmed that they have bought Niantic Games, including Pokémon GO, for this amount (via scopely.com).
First, no major changes
What does this mean for Pokémon GO? Players of Pokémon GO can first breathe easy. As announced by the new owners, there will be no immediate changes to the game. So you can continue to catch monsters with peace of mind for a while.
For the employees, the takeover is not expected to mean anything negative either. The team behind Pokémon GO is expected to remain as it is, with no layoffs planned. Furthermore, the planned and in-progress features are to continue.
The new owners state in their statement: “We know that changes can lead to uncertainties. But in this case, the most important thing is to know that the games you enjoy so much will remain the experiences you know and love.” (via scopely.com)
So Pokémon GO is expected to remain at its core as you are used to. Scopely also intends to work on ensuring the games are supported in the long term.
Which games from Niantic are included in the deal? The deal includes the development team for Niantic’s games. Additionally, the games Pokémon GO, Pikmin Bloom, and Monster Hunter Now, as well as the apps Campfire and Wayfarer, are part of the deal.
Niantic will also spin off its technology platform into a standalone company named Niantic Spatial Inc. This will be led by John Hanke, the current CEO of Niantic. The games Ingress Prime and Peridot will not be sold but will be spun off into the new company.
The new owners are still silent about what exact changes players of Pokémon GO can expect. However, with a deal worth billions, it can be assumed that the new owners are confident that Pokémon GO will continue to generate revenue for a long time. Currently, however, the Color Festival is first on the agenda: Pokémon GO: Color Festival 2025 kicks off with one of the rarest Shinies in the game – All event content
