Marvel Snap Returns: Developers Seek New Publisher

On January 19, TikTok, the popular social media platform, temporarily halted its operations in the United States, unexpectedly impacting Marvel Snap, a renowned card game developed by Second Dinner Studios and released by Nuverse, a division of ByteDance, TikTok's parent company. The game was unavailable for 24 hours but is now back online, though still undergoing efforts to restore full access, with in-game purchases currently unavailable. In response to this incident, the developers are contemplating a change in publishers and plan to shift some services to internal resources, as announced in an official statement on Platform X. This decision stems from political risks, particularly as TikTok was granted only a 90-day extension to sell 50% of its business to a local owner. Failure to meet this agreement could lead to further blockages for TikTok and related projects like Marvel Snap.

Second Dinner Studios has promised to provide more information in the future. Despite the game's restoration, many players are still facing authorization issues, though PC users can still access it on Steam. The developers at Second Dinner expressed their surprise at the incident and are diligently working to fully restore the game. According to an official statement on Platform X, "Marvel Snap is here to stay. We're working hard to restore the game as quickly as possible, and we'll keep players informed of our progress."

A particularly frustrating aspect of this situation was the lack of prior warning to players. Many continued to spend money on in-game purchases, unaware of the potential lockout.