Is Pokemon GO Shutting Down? Rumor Explained

If you’ve not heard yet, there have been widespread whispers about Pokemon GO and the possibility of shutting down. In this post, I’ll discuss if the rumors are true or false, what would be the reasoning for such gossip to start surfacing, and what would cause Niantic and Co. to shut down one of their biggest successes if true. 

If rumors are wide off the mark, I’ll also examine why they are not closing gym. Let’s get into why, what, when, and how come we are hearing such dramatic news about the on-the-go mobile game. 

Will Pokemon GO Be Shutting Down?

No, Pokemon GO will not be shutting down now or in the near future. The augmented reality (AR) game is still widely loved by fans and players and is still lucratively successful for the creators of the game. 

If they were to stop the Pokemon raid worldwide, there would be two main reasons to point out why. The two main factors why these cancellation talks have made the rumor mill would be down to the financial and downloadable status of the game. 

Discussing the Financial Reasons 

As per mobilegamer.biz, Pokemon GO saw its biggest drop in revenue in April 2023 since 2018. In-game purchases fell by an unprecedented 40% during this time. Due to this significant drop in April, Pokemon GO fell out of the top 10 most-grossing mobile games. 

Before April, GO was bringing in about $58m per month. This further establishes how low the $34.7m received during last month was an all-time low for them.

Discussing The Download Reasons

The loss in earnings was not only suffered because of in-game purchases drying up but because there was quite a decline in Pokemon GO downloads and active users. I, too, found myself playing other mobile games more often than GO, so it comes as no surprise. 

Related: How to Heal Pokemon in Pokemon GO Explained

The decline started in 2021 when there were only 71 million active users, 161 million less than 2016’s 232 million. This could suggest that the game is becoming less attractive to players and could be less popular with some new AR mobile games on the circuit. So for these two reasons, I can see why they would want to start considering their options if rumors were true. 

What Are the Reasons Pokemon Go Will Not Shut Down?

The reasons for not shutting down are plain and simple. Although there have been reports of a drop off in revenue, Pokemon GO is still raking in millions per day, week, month, and year. There are roughly nine million players who still actively play per day. 

With the recent release of Season 10 and all the events, such as the Shadow Raids event, the introduction of the Master Ball, and other cool new features being added and significant changes being made, there’s no way Niantic’s drawing the curtains closed on Pokemon GO anytime soon.

Want to find out what’s the rarest Pokemon in GO? Then ready: What is the Rarest Pokemon in Pokemon GO?