ByteDance Plans To Close Nuverse And Withdraw From The Game Industry

ByteDance wants to close the game division, Nuverse. (photo: x @MarketWatch)

JAKARTA - ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, plans to end its gaming brand, Nuverse, and withdraw from the main gaming industry.ByteDance has decided to restructure their gaming business after conducting a review, without providing further details.

"We regularly review our business and make adjustments to focus on long-term strategic growth areas. After a recent review, we have made difficult decisions to restructure our gaming business," a company spokesman said.

Sources familiar with the matter said ByteDance would notify employees on Monday 27 November to stop work on games that had not yet been released in December. They will also look for ways to escape from the titles that have already been launched.

According to sources, this decision is likely to have an impact on hundreds of employees, some of whom know about this move at the end of last week.

This Chinese technology company has no plans to return to the global video game market worth 185 billion US dollars.Merek Ohayo's casual game, whose games appear on Douyin - China's TikTok app - will not be affected, nor will the casual game running on TikTok.

Reuters reported this month that ByteDance has started looking for buyers for game development subsidiary Moonton Technology. The company is also reshuffling its virtual reality company, Pico, by cutting most of its content team.

The formation of the Nuverse by ByteDance in 2019 is considered a major boost to the global gaming industry and its strategic elements in competition with its domestic rival, Tencent Holdings, the world's largest gaming company.

But Nuverse's performance is considered inconsistent. Their famous game is "Marvel Snap", an online card game that has loyal fans but is not a commercial hit. Other titles include action games "One Piece: The Voyage" and "Crystal of Atland".

Nuverse is back in the spotlight in 2021 when ByteDance sets its status as one of six business units under wider restructuring.

To expand its production capacity, Nuverse acquired external studios including C4games in 2021.