Pokémon Go Director Talks New Ownership, Says Saudi Backing Won't See Demands Such as Cristiano Ronaldo Added to the Game: 'Yeah, That's a Little Bit Not Our Vibe'

Earlier this year, Pokémon Go shaper Niantic announced it was selling its portfolio of mobile games to Monopoly Go proprietor Scopely for $3.5bn, successful a determination that was some celebrated and scorned by parts of the game's devoted playerbase.

For immoderate fans, caller ownership yet meant state from erstwhile proprietor Niantic's absorption connected pushing mostly unwanted augmented world features into the game. (Post-sale, Niantic has fundamentally rebranded nether a caller title, Niantic Spatial, and made pursuing AR exertion its sole goal.) Scopely, by comparison, is wholly gaming-focused.

But for different fans, peculiarly those who person played different Scopely titles, the alteration sparked concerns astir the imaginable for accrued monetisation, and of immoderate engagement by Scopely's genitor institution Savvy Games, which is simply a merchandise of Saudi Arabia's arguable Public Investment Fund.

As portion of his archetypal circular of interviews since the $3.5bn acquisition was finalised earlier this month, I sat down with Pokémon Go manager Michael Steranka to sermon the interaction of the crippled changing hands, and what being owned by Scopely would truly mean for fans of the deed smartphone crippled going forwards.

"We physically moved fundamentally 1 artifact implicit so, you know, it wasn't excessively overmuch of a change," Steranka begins, arsenic we beryllium connected Pokémon Go-branded platform chairs astatine the game's large Go Fest 2025 unrecorded lawsuit successful Paris past weekend. "It was really 1 of our overflow offices that we had anyways, truthful a truly acquainted space.

"I would accidental the astir singular happening astir this modulation truthful acold is however uninterrupted it's been," helium adds. "It's precise overmuch been concern arsenic usual."

For Pokémon Go, concern arsenic accustomed means a continually engaged docket of in-game events and further Pokémon releases, arsenic good arsenic carnal events specified arsenic Go Fest 2025 and the upcoming debut of a mysterious mobile lawsuit series, Pokémon Go Road Trip 2025, acceptable to statesman successful the UK aboriginal this period and wrapper up successful Cologne successful August. Throughout this, and done its acquisition period, Steranka says Pokémon Go has continued arsenic mean — though it is, arsenic helium acknowledges, inactive aboriginal days.

"Granted, [the acquisition] afloat closed during Osaka Go Fest, the squad has been rather busy, and truthful it's astir apt intentionally not disruptive astir this infinitesimal successful time," helium notes. "But the consciousness that I've been getting done each the conversations I've had with folks astatine Scopely is the mode they run is to beryllium rather unintrusive with idiosyncratic crippled teams.

"As you know, our afloat improvement squad moved implicit with us, and successful presumption of the time to day, who we interact with, we each inactive ladder up to Ed Woo, our team's person wrong Niantic, who inactive is wrong Scopely arsenic well."

So, what volition change? Let's commencement with a affirmative for astir Pokémon Go fans — the apt simplification successful absorption of AR-focused gameplay going forward.

"The cardinal happening that's possibly a small spot little of a precedence is the augmented world focus," Steranka acknowledges. "It's nary concealed a batch of players person not been ace excited astir immoderate of the AR systems that person been added to the crippled implicit the years. Moving forward, if we adhd immoderate AR functionality to Pokémon Go, it'll beryllium due to the fact that we arsenic a squad truly judge it's going to beryllium a amusive and breathtaking happening to add."

Unlike Niantic, Scopely is simply a institution wholly dedicated to video games — thing Steranka possibly tellingly describes arsenic a "breath of caller air" for his ain team.

"Philosophically it's great, oregon I'm expecting it to beryllium great, to beryllium astatine a institution that's afloat dedicated to games, due to the fact that that's wherever I consciousness similar we did conflict a small spot implicit connected the Niantic side," helium says. "It's conscionable erstwhile it comes to wide institution priorities, and wherever bash we privation to invest, and what benignant of institution initiatives we're pushing guardant astatine Scopely, it'll beryllium precise overmuch focused connected what's champion for this game. And I deliberation that'll beryllium a bully enactment of caller aerial for everybody."

Pokémon Go plans retired caller features months successful advance, specified arsenic it's upcoming caller Golden Bottle Cap item.

Despite caller changes to summation the magnitude of in-game features disposable to fans playing remotely, and the instauration of caller items specified arsenic the Lucky Trinket and the pricey upcoming Golden Bottle Cap, Steranka says players are simply seeing the Pokémon Go team's ain roadmap of features, planned months successful advance, spell live.

"It's benignant of funny, due to the fact that I deliberation immoderate of the caller changes we've made successful the crippled person been things that players person been hoping for and wanting for a while, and a batch of online chatter that I've seen has been suspicion that, like, 'Oh, this is this indispensable beryllium due to the fact that of the Scopely acquisition'," Steranka says. "These are things we've been moving on.

"But to beryllium fair, Scopely hasn't travel successful and said, 'Hey, don't bash that.' They've precise overmuch travel successful and been precise supportive of each the things that we had already been readying connected the roadmap. We've got a mates different astonishing features and updates coming down the enactment aboriginal this twelvemonth that players volition beryllium arsenic thrilled to see."

Indeed, successful presumption of the game's plans for the future, and the proposition that immoderate caller proprietor mightiness travel successful and commencement adding caller things to Pokémon Go's existing contented schedule, Steranka says the Pokémon Go squad already has "pretty overmuch planned retired for the adjacent 2 years, essentially, though that does alteration implicit clip arsenic well."

Shortly aft the merchantability was archetypal announced, Steranka sat down for a lengthy bosom to bosom with TrainerTips, possibly the best-known and longest lasting Pokémon Go subordinate connected YouTube, for an insightful interrogation that aimed to soothe archetypal instrumentality fears implicit the game's future. Months later, and with the woody present done, I inquire Steranka wherever helium thought assemblage sentiment towards the crippled and its caller ownership stood now.

"I deliberation radical who are skeptical volition stay skeptical," Steranka replies. "The biggest happening that we tin bash is conscionable beryllium implicit clip that this really is simply a large absorption for the crippled to go. But I bash deliberation that, particularly aft having that interrogation with TrainerTips, I've decidedly seen radical person a small spot much optimism for the future. It's steadfast skepticism, but optimistic, regardless. So that's however I consciousness personally.

"I've heard large things astir Scopely. I deliberation actions volition talk louder than words, but truthful far, the actions person been awesome, and I person each anticipation that that's going to proceed implicit the coming years."

Scopely is champion known for moving smash deed smartphone crippled Monopoly Go!

Still, alongside this enthusiasm, I was keen to inquire astir the match-up betwixt Niantic's now-separate Pokémon Go squad and the Savvy Games-owned Scopely. In the past, Pokémon Go has often positioned itself arsenic an inclusive crippled tally by progressive leadership. I asked Steranka what the interior conversations were similar astir being owned, ultimately, by a Saudi-backed company, and what it mightiness mean for the crippled going forward.

"That was decidedly thing I was funny astir personally aboriginal connected erstwhile I met with Walter Driver, the co-CEO and laminitis of Scopely," Steranka acknowledges. "I did code that caput connected with him, and his position connected that truly resonated with me.

"Number one, [the Pokémon Go] squad is beauteous overmuch ne'er gonna beryllium engaging straight with Savvy. For the astir part, they conscionable fto Scopely run the mode that they privation to operate. Number two, it's ever amended to prosecute with radical of each antithetic kinds of backgrounds. And if there's immoderate alteration that you'd similar to marque successful the world, you can't truly marque immoderate changes by not engaging, right?

"And I deliberation that really is very, benignant of cardinal to our doctrine astir Pokémon Go arsenic a crippled arsenic well. We privation radical to spell retired and conscionable with different folks successful their assemblage and afloat judge successful the powerfulness of getting look to look and uncovering communal crushed and bettering the satellite from that benignant of community-first approach.

"So yeah, I don't deliberation there's going to beryllium immoderate large oregon immoderate changes astatine each that is dictated down connected high, from Savvy, and if thing it conscionable means we person the backing needed to put successful areas that we've ever wanted to put in. And truthful that's thing I've truly been excited about, due to the fact that determination is simply a satellite wherever possibly we became a nationalist company, and past we're astatine the scrutiny of shareholder demands connected a quaterly basis. That's not truly a satellite we're operating successful wrong astatine Scopely, which is great. It tin beryllium a batch much focused connected what's champion for the agelong word wellness of the game."

Earlier this year, SNK, different Saudi-backed company, raised eyebrows by including European shot prima Cristian Ronaldo successful its caller crippled Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, arsenic Ronaldo himself cemented himself wrong the Saudi shot leagues.

"I did spot that," Steranka says, erstwhile I bring this up.

I conjecture what you're saying is, don't expect Ronaldo successful Pokémon Go anytime soon, I ask.

"Definitely not," is Steranka's reply. "Yeah, that's a small spot not our vibe wrong Pokémon Go."

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social