When Pokemon GO was first announced, we didn’t know what to make of it. Then as it got detailed, we knew it was something we had to try. When it arrived, it took the world by storm, and became a global phenomenon within days. But as the flaws started to show, a lot of people dropped out of it. But developer Niantic didn’t let that phase them, and so they continued to work on the title, make it better, make it more refined, and now, while it’s not at opening day levels of success, it’s still doing incredible.
During the most recent Pokemon GO Fest in Chicago (which was not a bust this time), Niantic CEO John Hanke talked with The Guardian about what it meant to Niantic that the game was still mega popular after two years of life:
“I don’t think I could have imagined anything about the last two years. But it’s been great. I guess what’s most satisfying two years in, is seeing this thriving, strong user base of people that are not here for the fad, but because they love the core values of the game. Which is why we did it. It got lost in the first two months of Pokémon Go craziness. I wasn’t sure if people liked us for who we really were, or if they were just there because everybody else was.”
What’s kept the game fresh though are all the new features that Niantic has developed for it, and there are more to come. Hanke noted how Niantic views these features:
“It’s important that you have a vision of where you want to go. You can’t just be subject to the whims of what the public expresses. We’ve always tried to break new ground: things like trading and player v player combat, which is still not in the game but is something we think belongs in it. It feels like we are finally on a nice, regular cadence.
Pokemon GO lives on, and at the rate it’s going? It won’t be stopping anytime soon.
