Pokémon Go creator Niantic announced today the acquisition of Mayhem, a small San Francisco startup focused on online gaming communities, along the lines of the much larger Discord. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Between the lines: As it stands, the social options within Niantic games are fairly limited, and many players use Discord servers to discuss the game, plan meet-ups and share strategy.
The big picture: Niantic has a bold goal of digitally mapping in 3D the entire world and creating an augmented-reality platform that can be used for a wide range of games and other applications.
- Mayhem is a small company with only a handful of employees, having raised $5.7 million. But it fits within Niantic's approach of using acquisitions to expand its technology and employee skill set.
- It's the company's seventh acquisition in recent years, following last year's purchase of 3D mapping company 6D.ai.
What's next: Niantic plans to wind down Mayhem's standalone product and use the team and technology to work on social efforts specific to its own apps.
