Niantic slammed by Pokemon Go players over ‘HearUsNiantic’ reply
NianticPokemon Go fans are not happy after the game’s director said developer Niantic has no plans to address community feedback through the HearUsNiantic movement.
In April 2023, the Pokemon Go community started the HearUsNiantic hashtag on social in response to Niantic heavily nerfing Remote Raid Passes.
The hashtag began trending on Twitter, which gave players a concentrated avenue to voice their frustrations with the recent direction of the game. Additionally, many players hoped that Niantic would see the community was unhappy and make changes.
Now, a recent interview from Pokemon Go’s game director has fans furious, after he stated the developer had no plans to act on the HearUsNiantic movement.
Pokemon Go community unhappy with HearUsNiantic reply
For those who may not have seen it, Pokemon Go Director Michael Steranka spoke with Dot Esports about the HearUsNiantic movement and the changes to Remote Raid Passes.
Members of the Pokemon Go community have started sharing the interview on social media and player reactions are not positive, with many fans claiming Niantic simply doesn’t care about the community.
In particular, fans have latched on to Steranka’s quote that the company has “no plans to directly address any of the HearUsNiantic things recently.”
“‘We hear you, we don’t care.’ That’s the article,” said one fan, who gained 1,600 upvotes on their comment.
Others simply stated that this interview confirms their worst fears about where Pokemon Go is headed. “Another confirmation that I made the right decision to leave the game,” said another trainer.
Players also shared their skepticism about Niantic in other ways, with some claiming the timing of this interview’s release was too convenient. “The fact that this interview was shared shortly before the Shadow Raid announcement tells me they really want any outrage to be buried by hype,” guessed one player, with many others seeing the same logic.
Regardless of whether or not this was a calculated move on Niantic’s part, it’s abundantly clear that Pokemon Go players are not happy with the developer’s recent actions and — after a month of campaigning — still want to be heard.