Pokémon Go’s revenue shot up slightly last month after slumping to the lowest it had been in five years—and having Shadow Mewtwo headline the Rising Shadows event was a big part of that. It’s the strongest Pokémon in the game, and players lined up to purchase the Special Research ticket required to catch it.
The amount it generated went up from $34 million in April to $39.1 million in May, according to a report from MobileGamer.biz on June 7. It was still lower than the $50 million it averaged in 2022, but it was a step in the right direction that went against the grain.
The reason Pokémon Go’s revenue had been on the decline was due to the large volume of players boycotting and quitting to protest the Remote Raid Pass changes. Niantic downplayed these claims, insisting revenue in 2023 was already tracking better than last year, but third-party estimates told a different story. MobileGamer.biz, who reported that data too, said it was sourced from Appmagic, Data.ai, and Sensor Tower and was consistent between all three.
It seems like things are on the mend for now, but that could change this month. The biggest events in the pipeline are the Water Festival Beach Week and the Solstice Horizon event—both of which pale in comparison to the Rising Shadows event with Shadow Mewtwo. This could result in another dip since the influx of revenue might have only been temporary.
That said, Pokémon Go Fest 2023, which kicks off in August, is fast approaching. An event of that magnitude has the potential to cause another spike in revenue, especially since it includes three in-person events and one online event. Only time will tell whether that happens, or if the popular mobile title’s revenue will continue to decline now that it has seemingly passed its prime.
