Pokemon GO could be sold to Monopoly GO! creators for $3.5 billion. Players aren't sure if this is good news
Pokemon GO fans have an undying love for Niantic, but news of the possible sale of the studio's gaming section for $3.5 billion doesn't fill them with enthusiasm.
Pokemon GO and the entire segment of Niantic studio games may be sold for 3.5 billion dollars.
This information was obtained by Bloomberg, which reports that the British company is in talks to sell not only its hit game but also its entire gaming division to the California-based studio Scopely. The developer's catalog includes titles like Monopoly Go!, Marvel Strike Force, and Star Trek Fleet Command.
From 2024, the team belongs to the Arab group Savvy Games. The same one that is allegedly working on the DLC for Assassin's Creed: Mirage, and with which Niantic established cooperation a year ago for the "expansion" in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
It's worth noting that the group also has shares in Nintendo (7.5%). In April 2024, Brian Ward (CEO of Savvy Games) hinted that Scopely might expand its catalog with a "leading title in the genre" (via Bloomberg / Gulf News), and as for the AR games market, POGO is undoubtedly in the first place.
8 years of Pokemon GO
Fans have mixed feelings about these reports. At one time, Pokemon GO was an absolute phenomenon, making a spectacular debut in 2016, despite the lack of many features that were only added later (including the trading system and PvP ranking gameplay). Even now, over 8 years later, POGO remains one of the hits for mobiles.
Nonetheless, in recent years Niantic has given players plenty of reasons to complain. The change in the remote raid system was particularly painful for them. Not only are these practically more than twice as expensive as local premium passes, but they also offer slightly worse rewards, especially for raids with legendary creatures, which are the ones that most players use their remote "passes" for.
Alongside this were complaints about technical issues (mostly minor, but some more serious) and Niantic's strategies, which, in brief, encouraged spending money in an aggressive manner (such as by offering the new non-legendary creature only through eggs or raids).
Many internet users also disliked the emphasis on "on-site" entertainment, such as exploration, going to PokeGyms, etc. In theory, it made sense (after all, it's Pokemon GO, not Pokemon at HOME), but in practice, it made the game more difficult for people who usually play alone or in very small groups.
Adding to this are the communication issues with players, such as frequent mistakes in official statements, making it understandable why some users weren't particularly friendly towards the developers. Especially because their later projects didn't replicate the success of mobile Pokemon, leading the company to join the widespread wave of layoffs.
Out of the frying pan into the fire?
Of course, these difficulties resulted in occasional suggestions for The Pokemon Company to hand over the care of Pokemon GO to another team. However, fans aren't convinced whether Scopely is a good choice for the new developer of POGO.
Some concerns relate to the AR aspect of the game, which is still a significant element of Pokemon GO. No matter what you say, Niantic team is an expert in this technology. We could even say that the company is rather a group of researchers than game developers - which, if you insist, somewhat explains at least the initial problems in the development of POGO.
However, players are most concerned about the issue of monetization. Niantic slowly adopted below-the-belt tactics, yet they still didn't reach the level of the most "aggressive" microtransactions seen in many mobile games. For instance, Monopoly GO! is commonly seen as a stereotypical case of a title bloated with microtransactions.
As a result, players are concerned that the potential new developer might take microtransactions a step further (with some extreme internet users mentioning ads shown before spinning PokeStop discs). For many people, such a decision would be the nail in the coffin for this game.
Nonetheless, some fans believe that The Pokemon Company will not allow such practices in a game using the company's brand. Moreover, Bloomberg admits that there is still no certainty whether the transaction will take place at all.
