When Pokemon Go was first launched in July, it had almost 45 million daily users but this figure happens to have sunk by more than 12 million since the start of August. Further decline is expected, as downloads, engagement and time users spend on the app have also decrease.
Why does this happen?
The decline was unavoidable and it is predicted by many media outlets.
Craig Chapple, editor of mobile games trade publication PocketGamer.Biz, is one of many game journalists who saw the inevitable fall. “It’s rare for games to explode in popularity like Pokemon Go has, but a drop in users was always expected after a big launch,” he told the BBC.
At the moment the app still sits on the list of top grossing games within iOS and Android app stores, but Chapple warns that the drop-off could continue.
“Pokemon Go is unique,” he told the BBC. “It relies on people in your local area playing with you, not someone on the other side of the world. If the numbers continued to drop so dramatically, who will be left to play you in your small, local town?”
What Niantic has to say about this?
The app developer, Niantic, was caught off guard by the sheer popularity of the AR game, but it has pledged to continue supporting the game with bi-weekly updates.
“Running a product like Pokemon Go at scale is challenging,” the developer recently wrote on its blog.
The game has yet to be released across many parts of Asia and Africa, which could improve the user figures once it arrive in those territories.