Report: ByteDance plans to ditch Marvel Snap publisher Nuverse as part of its plans to move away from mainstream gaming

TikTok maker ByteDance has reportedly decided to restructure its gaming business. This will likely affect the Chinese tech giant’s main video game arm, Nuverse.

• As four people familiar with the matter told Reuters, ByteDance plans to “wind down” its video game publisher Nuverse.
• “We regularly review our businesses and make adjustments to centre on long-term strategic growth areas,” the company’s spokesperson said. “Following a recent review, we’ve made the difficult decision to restructure our gaming business.”
• According to Reuters, ByteDance will officially tell employees about the restructuring on November 27. All work on unreleased games will be ceased by December, and the company will look for ways to divest from already launched titles.
• The move, however, won’t affect casual games on TikTok and its Chinese version, Douyin.
• Earlier this month, Reuters also reported that ByteDance plans to sale Moonton Technology, the developer of mobile game Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, which it acquired at a $4 billion valuation in 2021.

Launched in 2019, Nuverse is best known for publishing Marvel Snap, a hit mobile title created by former Hearthstone director Ben Brode and his new studio Second Dinner. In its first year, the game generated over $116 million on mobile, with more than 23 million downloads.

According to AppMagic, Marvel Snap is the highest-grossing collectible card game of 2023, with nearly $100 million in IAP revenue year-to-date. It is followed by Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel ($43 million), Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links ($29 million), Magic: The Gathering Arena ($27 million), and Hearthstone ($26.9 million).

Top 10 highest-grossing CCG titles of 2023, according to AppMagic

Nuverse’s portfolio also includes games like One Piece Blood Routes / 航海王热血航线 ($162 million), Ragnarok X: Next Generation ($154 million in lifetime IAP revenue), and Warhammer 40,000: Lost Crusade ($27 million). Moonton’s Mobile Legends: Bang Bang has generated over $1 billion since its launch in 2016.

It is unclear how the reported restructuring of ByteDance’s gaming business will affect these titles and what companies will operate in the case of a potential divestment. ByteDance itself currently doesn’t disclose the reasons behind its decision to move away from the game publishing business, which initially was part of its competition with domestic rival Tencent.