Pokemon Go developer Niantic is being bought for $3.5 billion, CEO says it'll help its games be "'forever games' that will endure for future generations"

Pokemon Go player trying to catch a Croagunk — (Image credit: Niantic)

Pokemon Go developer Niantic is being acquired by mobile game developer and publisher Scopely for a whopping $3.5 billion.

It's been confirmed that all of Niantic's current dev teams, as well as its full portfolio of games – from Pokemon Go itself to Pikmin Bloom and Monster Hunter Now – will all belong to Scopely.

In a statement, Tim O'Brien, Scopely board member and chief revenue officer, says the company has been "extremely inspired" by Niantic's efforts over the last decade, namely "delivering innovative experiences that captivate a vast, enduring global audience and get people out in the real world." He continues: "We look forward to further accelerating the team’s creativity through our partnership."

Going forward (if you'll excuse the pun), Ed Wu, the senior vice president of Pokemon Go, says that the team's "mission remains clear: to inspire people to discover Pokemon in the real world together." He continues: "With Scopely's full commitment, experience, and resources, we're going to make Pokemon Go the very best it can be – from incredible battles for thousands of Trainers at a time at our live events to new ways to connect to your friends and community. Most importantly, we'll remain focused on the excitement and experience of discovering Pokemon in the real world."

Here's hoping, then, that players do actually see a benefit from this – it's hard to tell at this point what the impact could be. Right now, it's worth noting that the $3.5 billion transaction still has to pass regulatory approvals, and we know from the likes of Microsoft's Activision Blizzard buyout that that can take a while. Microsoft's own deal was first revealed in January 2022, but wasn't finalized until October 2023.

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I'm GamesRadar+'s Deputy News Editor, working alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

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