‘Marvel Snap’ Game Also Goes Dark and Is Pulled From App Stores Because of TikTok Ban
Don’t blame Thanos: “Marvel Snap” is a casualty of the U.S. government’s move to ban TikTok over fears about its parent company’s Chinese ties.
It’s not just TikTok that winked offline for U.S. users Saturday, just hours before the Jan. 19 deadline specified by the U.S. divest-or-ban law targeting TikTok. At least 10 other ByteDance-owned apps also were disabled Saturday night because of a U.S. law prohibiting them from being distributed in the country unless the Beijing-based company sold the apps — including “Marvel Snap,” a digital collectible card game featuring characters from the Disney-owned studio.
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On Saturday night, “Marvel Snap,” developed by Second Dinner and published by ByteDance’s Nuverse games division, was pulled from Apple and Google app stores. The app also displayed a message to players that the game was temporarily unavailable to American users.
“Unfortunately, MARVEL SNAP is temporarily unavailable in U.S. app stores and is unavailable to play in the U.S.,” Second Dinner said in a statement posted on X late Saturday. “In a surprise to Second Dinner and our publisher Nuverse, MARVEL SNAP was affected by the takedown of TikTok late on Saturday, January 18th. MARVEL SNAP isn’t going anywhere. We’re actively working on getting the game up as soon as possible and will update you once we have more to share.”
“Marvel Snap” was released in October 2022. Marvel describes the game this way: “The fastest card battler in the Multiverse is here! Assemble your Marvel dream team from a super roster of your favorite heroes and villains — then make your move. MARVEL SNAP unleashes the entire Marvel Universe into a fast-paced, adrenaline-pumping, strategic card battler.”
SEE ALSO: TikTok Shuts Down in U.S.: What Happens Next?
Apple posted a message Saturday regarding “availability of TikTok and ByteDance Ltd. apps in the United States,” explaining that the apps are no longer available in the country.
“Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates,” the message says. “Pursuant to the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, apps developed by ByteDance Ltd. and its subsidiaries — including TikTok, CapCut, Lemon8, and others — will no longer be available for download or updates on the App Store for users in the United States starting January 19, 2025.”
The following apps developed by ByteDance and its subsidiaries are affected: TikTok, TikTok Studio, TikTok Shop Seller Center, CapCut, Lemon8, Hypic, Lark – Team Collaboration, Lark – Rooms Display, Lark Rooms Controller, Gauth: AI Study Companion and Marvel Snap.
According to Apple’s notice, the apps will remain on users’ devices if they have already been installed. However, “they can’t be redownloaded if deleted or restored if you move to a new device. In-app purchases and new subscriptions are no longer possible.” In addition, “Users in the United States won’t receive updates for these apps, which could potentially impact performance, security and compatibility with future versions of iOS and iPadOS, and some app functions might become limited or stop working since the app can’t receive updates.”
The U.S. divest-or-ban law, upheld Friday by a unanimous Supreme Court ruling, imposes fines of $5,000 per user (per app) on companies that host or distribute ByteDance-controlled apps. The Biden administration had said it would not enforce the ban and that it would be up to President-elect Donald Trump, set to be sworn in Jan. 20, to determine how to do so. But TikTok said it was “forced” to shut down without a guarantee that partners like Apple and Google would not be subject to the heavy fines.
Trump told NBC News in an interview Saturday that he would “most likely” order a 90-day extension beyond the Jan. 19 date requiring ByteDance to divest TikTok and other apps, as his administration tries to reach a viable solution. However, under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, the U.S. president must certify to Congress that there are “relevant binding legal agreements” for the ByteDance divestitures in order for an extension to be granted — and there are no known such agreements in place.
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