Niantic (pokemon GO) announced last Wednesday that it will shut down the servers for its Transformers: Heavy Metal real-world AR mobile game based on the Transformers franchise on August 31. The game was available in beta in several countries while it was still in development. For these areas, Niantic will take the game down from both the App Store and Google Play Store, and it will remove in-game purchases.
Bloomberg reported that last month Niantic is canceling the game alongside three other projects. The company is also cutting about 85 to 90 jobs.
Niantic was collaborating with Hasbro and TOMMY to launch the game. Seattle-based Very Very Spaceship was developing the game for iOS and Android devices.
According to Bloomberg, Niantic CEO John Hanke stated that the company is “facing a time of economic turmoil” adding that it needs to “further streamline [its] operations in order to best position the company to weather any economic storms that may lie ahead.”
Niantic and the The Pokémon Company International launched the pokemon GO app in select countries including the United States in July 2016.
The Transformers: Beyond Reality virtual reality game was set for release on March 31 and then was delayed before its cancellation.
Transformers: Rise of the Beaststhe next film in the live-action Transformers franchisewill open on June 9, 2023.
Source: Niantic‘s website via Transformer World 2005