Scopely, the parent company of Pokémon Go maker Niantic, has "reorganized" the team behind multiplayer party knockout game Stumble Guys.

A Scopely spokesperson sent Game Developer the following statement: "We regularly review the performance of our games to ensure we are delivering the best possible experience for our players. As a result of a recent assessment, we made the decision to reorganize our team supporting Stumble Guys, potentially impacting a limited number of roles."

It continues: "We have also been able to transition a number of those impacted to other parts of the business. For the small number of employees who do not remain with Scopely, we are supporting them as they explore new opportunities and are extremely grateful for their contributions to Scopely and our player community."

Last week, a senior producer at the company said on LinkedIn that this was the second time they had been "laid off due to structure changes in multi-billion dollar companies," recalling their past tenure at Blizzard.

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"This time, at Scopely, it has stung a lot more because of the timing. My layoff notice came the literal next day after I came back from my paternity leave. You can imagine, or at least venture an educated guess, how hard that hits," the senior producer said.

Yesterday, three other employees—the senior manager of talent programs, learning and development, the director of product management, and a level designer—all announced their departures from the company. According to the posts, some left yesterday, while others will stay until August.

"As I move on to a new adventure, my position is now open," the level designer wrote. "If you're an experienced Senior Game Designer looking for your next challenge, this is a fantastic opportunity to help shape the future of gameplay in Stumble Guys and build experiences enjoyed by millions of players every day."

Scopely, which is under the ownership of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, hit $15 billion in lifetime revenue earlier this year. The company snapped up Niantic in March of last year, and nabbed a majority stake in Pixel Flow! studio Loom Games in February 2026.

It's worth remembering that Saudi Arabia's investment in games (which could include majority ownership of EA) has drawn criticism due to human rights controversies and accusations of abuse in the kingdom, including Prince Mohammed bin Salman's widely-reported links to the the murder of The Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The latter controversy was brought up again in a 2025 White House visit.

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Last month, a new report alleged that nearly 30 billion scans made by Pokémon Go players had reportedly been sold to a military drone technology company. A spokesperson for Niantic Spatial told Game Developer that, "now as part of Scopely, Pokémon Go is not shared with Niantic Spatial."

"AR Scans collected through Pokémon Go were submitted voluntarily by players who opted into the feature and were subject to the applicable Terms of Service and Privacy Policy at the time. The discontinuation of AR scanning and the end of data sharing with Niantic Spatial were part of the transition planning associated with Pokémon Go's move to Scopely," the statement concluded.

About the Author

Diego Argüello

Contributing Editor, News, GameDeveloper.com

Diego Nicolás Argüello is a freelance journalist and critic from Argentina. Video games helped him to learn English, so now he covers them for places like The New York Times, NPR, Rolling Stone, and more. He also runs Into the Spine, a site dedicated to fostering and supporting new writers, and co-hosted Turnabout Breakdown, a podcast about the Ace Attorney series. He’s most likely playing a rhythm game as you read this.