Pokémon Go developer Niantic cancels four projects and lays off more than 80 people

Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge

The company is laying off 8 percent of its workforce and canceling four projects as it tries to duplicate the success of Pokémon Go with other mobile augmented reality games.

"We recently decided to stop production on some projects and reduce our workforce by about eight percent to focus on our key priorities." The contributions of those leaving are appreciated by us and we are supporting them through this difficult transition.

The Lightship platform, as well as a select set of new experiences, is what we can focus on now. This increased focus, as well as our strong core business, puts us in a position to weather the economic uncertainty many companies are facing.

Transformers: Heavy Metal, a game made in partnership with Sleep No More creator Punchdrunk, is one of the games that is being canceled. People are being let go.

Despite being almost six years old, Pokémon Go has proven to be an enduring hit. The Catan and Harry Potter franchise has been shut down by Niantic and Microsoft. The company just announced an NBA title as well as an adorable game that is in a soft launch.

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