Niantic cancels four AR projects and cuts jobs as it fails to duplicate past success

The company recently decided to stop production on some projects and reduce its workforce by about eight percent in order to focus on its most important priorities.

Niantic, the company behind Pokémon Go, is cutting 8% of its workforce, which is estimated to be between 85 and 90 positions. To make room for the new projects, four others were shelved by the virtual reality developer. To better prepare for any future economic turmoil, Niantic CEO John Hanke reportedly wrote in an email to employees that the company is "facing a time of economic turmoil" and must "further streamline our operations."

It's ironic that Niantic's announcement of NBA All-World, a basketball game it's making in partnership with the NBA and the league's players association, came the day before the news of layoffs and project cancellations.

According to a Niantic spokesperson, the company recently decided to stop production on some projects and reduce its workforce by about eight percent in order to focus on its most important priorities. Bloomberg first reported the news. It's a difficult transition, but we appreciate the contributions of those leaving Niantic and are here to help them.

Another project called Transformers: Heavy Metal has been placed on hold. As of the summer of 2018, Niantic and Hasbro had been beta-testing the game in select markets ahead of its official release date in 2021. Another Niantic project, dubbed Hamlet, has been shelved for now. Working with Punchdrunk, a theater company behind an immersive Macbeth production called Sleep No More was a part of that project. Blue Sky and Snowball are the other two projects that have been put on hold.

Pokémon Go's instant success in 2016 has yet to be replicated by Niantic. A Harry Potter-themed augmented reality game was cut off by the company earlier this year. Although Catan and Pikmin have both been discontinued, Bloomberg report points out that neither of these titles has been a success.