Niantic’s Game Division on the Market: What This Means for Pokémon Go Fans | TechCrunch

Niantic, the maker of the hit augmented reality game Pokémon Go, may soon sell off its game development branch. This news comes from a report on Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources.

They are said to be in talks with Scopely, a mobile game developer backed by Saudi Arabia’s Savvy Games Group, about a deal worth approximately $3.5 billion.

Neither Niantic nor Scopely has commented on this potential deal yet.

Niantic is known for its innovative use of augmented reality in gaming. The company started with Ingress, which offered a unique take on territory control based on real-world geography. However, it was Pokémon Go, launched in 2016, that brought them global fame and millions of players worldwide.

While Niantic has released other games, none have matched the success of Pokémon Go. In 2022, they faced challenges and cut 8% of their workforce, closing four projects, including Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. In 2023, they laid off 230 employees and dropped plans for NBA and Marvel games.

Recently, they enhanced their Scaniverse app, allowing users to model real-world objects for developers. Additionally, in November, Niantic announced ambitions to create a large geospatial model that leverages machine learning to connect different scenes from around the world.