TikTok's Down Time Swept up a Number of Other Apps, Including Marvel Snap

The TikTok ban has been the subject of a great deal of focus and controversy in recent weeks, in large part because the app has such a huge user base. What many failed to consider, though, is all the apps that might get swept up if TikTok were to go down in the U.S.

We learned more about exactly which apps would go down on Jan. 18, before the ban actually went into effect, when TikTok decided to temporarily shut itself down. Marvel Snap users discovered at the same time that the card-based game was also gone, and many now want to understand why. Here's what we know.

The reason that Marvel Snap was shut down seems to be because of the app's relationship to ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok. Marvel Snap was developed in the U.S. by a company called Second Dinner, and they released a statement expressing surprise that they had been caught up in the ban.

The game is published by Nuverse, a subsidiary of ByteDance. As such, it was caught up in the ban which prevents ByteDance from publishing games in the U.S.

Second Dinner was quick to promise that Marvel Snap wouldn't be going anywhere, though.

"We’re actively working on getting the game up as soon as possible and will update you once we have more to share," the company concluded.

The game's downtime was a surprise to many who play it regularly, some of whom were working on time-based challenges and other things in the app.

"During this downtime, we realize that many of you are missing out on time-based content, rewards, and Missions," the company added. "Second Dinner is committed to ensuring that all players are compensated for their lost time. We’ll be sharing more information on this as the situation evolves."

Of course, many just want the game to come back, and are wondering when that might be possible.

Although TikTok came back on Sunday morning, Marvel Snap is still down following the news of the ban.

In a post on Twitter late on the evening of Jan. 19, Second Dinner said that they were hoping to have the app back online "within 24 hours," which would mean sometime on Jan. 20. That is their most recent post as of this writing, so we don't know whether that timetable is still accurate or not.

TikTok came back online on Jan. 19 after incoming President Trump made assurances that he would delay enforcement of the ban as soon as he enters office. To be clear, though, he has not actually done that and may not, and this ban was started in 2020 at Trump's behest.

Marvel Snap's future seems a little bit uncertain, but given that the app has a U.S. based developer, it seems like there are ways it could continue to exist even in a world where TikTok doesn't. Only time will tell whether that comes to pass, though.