The Moonton game is being sold because ByteDance no longer wants to compete in the extreme gaming market. TikTok, a gaming company in Saudi Arabia, will purchase Mobile Legends: Bang Bang for $6 billion. The acquisition is one of the biggest mobile game deals of the year. Saudi Arabia supports a growing group of gamers and e-sports players.
ByteDance made $2 billion from the sale of its Moonton game unit, a unit it had previously acquired for $4 billion. Reuters reports that ByteDance is shifting its focus, stepping back from the high-stakes gaming arena, and redirecting its efforts toward social media and AI-driven content creation. Mobile Legends players shouldn’t experience any disruptions, as the studio now operates under new ownership. The main office and key personnel will remain based in Shanghai.
Moonton game sale marks the end of ByteDance gaming
The tech world was full of ideas about ByteDance’s gaming strategy for months. They’ve now taken a firm action: they’re cutting ties with the Moonton game studio. This decision shows they are moving away from the expensive and well-known world of “triple-A” mobile game development.
This move comes after they let go of many employees and reorganized their Nuverse division. According to Engadget, ByteDance had been looking for a buyer in secret for a few months to streamline its business and return money to its shareholders.
For those involved with Moonton games—both players and staff—the Savvy Games Group’s acquisition brings some clear changes and possible advantages.
- Operational Stability: Moonton’s CEO, Zhang Yunfan, assured employees in an internal memo that the existing management structure would remain unchanged, a move designed to maintain stability.
- Employee Incentives: The studio is introducing new incentive programs and accelerating bonus payments to its workforce of over 2,000.
- Global Expansion: Thanks to support from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), the studio is poised to expand its esports presence across the Middle East and beyond.
The deal ensures that Mobile Legends, with over 1.5 billion installs, will continue to receive the support it needs and new content.
What the savvy games group wants from the Moonton game
The acquisition of the Moonton game unit is a major win for the Savvy Games Group as it seeks to build a global gaming hub in Saudi Arabia. This purchase follows their other high-profile acquisitions, including the $4.9 billion deal for Monopoly Go maker Scopely. By adding Moonton to its portfolio, Savvy now owns one of the most profitable mobile MOBAs, a key pillar of Southeast Asia’s competitive gaming scene.
According to Nikkei Asia, the deal for Moonton games values the studio at a premium, given its massive monthly active user base of 110 million. While ByteDance is stepping back, Savvy games is stepping up, aiming to bridge the gap between Western and Eastern gaming markets. For Moonton games, the shift means moving from a parent company that viewed gaming as a side project to one that sees it as the center of its national economic vision.
In conclusion, this $6 billion deal is a clear sign that the power balance in the gaming industry is changing. Saudi Arabia is becoming a major player in the market by strategically buying the Moonton game studio.
