Niantic cuts 230 jobs and cancels development of a Marvel game

Niantic is banking on the success of games like Pikmin Bloom, Peridot, and the upcoming Monster Hunter Now. The company will also continue to focus on its flagship title Pokémon Go.

"Today's highly competitive mobile gaming market requires dazzling quality and innovation. It also requires strong monetization and a social core which can drive viral growth and long term engagement," Hanke continues. "Teams need platform tools that are force multipliers, enabling them to build at the highest quality with powerful engagement features quickly and efficiently. Our AR map and platform must deliver the features that developers want in a robust and reliable way."

Niantic saw a surge in revenue during the Covid pandemic and the company responded by increasing its workforce to meet the demand. However, revenues have returned to pre-pandemic levels, and new games from the company "have not delivered revenues commensurate with those investments."

The layoffs and the cancellation of games will "bring expenses and revenue back into line while preserving our core assets and long-term upside."

According to Hanke, the culture within Niantic is changing as a result, and will become a "more direct and results-based" company. "The leadership team and I are committed to cutting out unnecessary processes, duplicate lines of authority, and unclear decision making," Hanke said.

Outside of the companies already mentioned, The Embracer Group and Take-Two Interactive also had layoffs earlier this year.