Players in the United States (USA) woke up to find Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) inaccessible. The game is developed by Nuverse-owned MOONTON, a subsidiary of ByteDance which is the company behind TikTok.
While TikTok users were given a heads-up about the application’s ban, the news of ByteDance properties like MLBB being caught in the crossfire came as a surprise to players. In fact, other games like Marvel Snap, Watcher of Realms, and Mission EVO are also not playable anymore.
Image Credits: MOONTON
Why is MLBB not available in the U.S. amidst TikTok ban?
TikTok was banned due to the U.S. government’s concerns about the application’s alleged links to the Chinese government. While the law banning the application was set to take place on Sunday, the application voluntarily shut down operations late Saturday night.
The only way to prevent the impending ban was to sell TikTok to an entity with no ties to China. ByteDance chose not to do so.
The Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA) has banned all ByteDance-owned applications, of which MLBB and other games are included.
MOONTON Responds to the Situation
MOONTON has responded to the situation, calling it a “temporary suspension” of the game and stating that it is exploring ways to bring it back.
“Due to circumstances beyond our control, access to Mobile Legends: Bang Bang in the U.S. will unfortunately be temporarily suspended starting January 19, 2025,” a MOONTON spokesperson said. “Although we are unable to provide service in the U.S., we encourage you to stay updated by following our official community channels for the latest news. We deeply value our vibrant player community and are actively exploring possibilities to bring the game back in the future.”
The company acknowledged that services in other regions will remain unaffected. The ban is similar to India’s suspension of TikTok and MLBB in 2020 due to the same concerns of links to China. Boths apps are still unavailable in India.
Can MLBB Come Back to the U.S.?
Image Credits: Moonton
While MOONTON stated that it is working on bringing the game back, no timeline was provided. TikTok, in its message to users who open the app, said that President-elect Trump has “indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office.”
Trump is set to take office on January 20, although it’s currently unclear if the application will be unbanned after that. The president-elect told NBC that his administration will “most likely” give a “90-day extension” to the application, seemingly to explore a sale. It can be assumed that the situation for MLBB is similar.
There is another potential way for the game to return, though. In 2023, Reuters reported that ByteDance was exploring a sale of MOONTON to several companies, one of which was a Saudi-based firm. This sale was later canceled, per a Bloomberg report, with ByteDance bringing in a new CEO to lead MOONTON.
A similar potential sale in the future could pave the way for the game to become available in the U.S. once again. However, with MLBB not being very popular in the country anyway, this ban is unlikely to be a big reason to push for a sale of the game’s developer, which remains one of the top mobile esports games worldwide.
MOONTON doesn’t have any offices in the United States. However, there are esports athletes who depend on the game for their livelihood.
Ian “FwydChickn” Hohl, the EXP laner for American MLBB squad BTK, who recently represented the region at the M6 World Championship, posted a story with the word: “GG.”