ByteDance Shifts US Publishing to Skystone in Major Overhaul

• Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and other popular titles are transitioning to a new publisher.
• In the US, ByteDance will no longer be responsible for publishing these games.
• Skystone Games, a US-based company, is stepping in to handle the new region-specific versions.

One of the most significant news stories this year was the TikTok ban, which led to a voluntary offlining of the app. While the focus was on the reasons behind the ban in other sectors, in the mobile gaming world, the sudden removal of top games like Marvel Snap and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang from app stores grabbed our attention. These removals were part of a broader political push to pressure ByteDance into divesting from its popular social media platform.

Although TikTok has since returned, many of these games did not experience such a swift reinstatement. Marvel Snap, for instance, quickly announced its search for a new publisher and found one in Skystone Games. Skystone now holds the rights to nearly all of ByteDance's US-published games.

Touch the skyThe unexpected entanglement of mobile gaming in political drama was not something we anticipated this year. For the average player, this shift to Skystone Games is good news, as it means they can continue playing their favorite games, either as usual or through new US-specific versions.

However, this outcome is less than ideal, and the idea that our favorite games can be treated as political pawns is unsettling for everyone involved. As the deadline for a potential TikTok sale approaches, we'll see how political decisions impact apps and, consequently, the games published by the same company. This situation could set a precedent for future challenges in the gaming industry.