You Can Now Play Mini-Games on TikTok – TheLiberal.ie – Our News, Your Views

You Can Now Play Mini-Games on TikTok




TikTok has begun testing the introduction of games to its platform. The Chinese giant added nine mini-games to the app and, according to several online publications, both US and UK-based accounts can now add links to the mini-games on their videos. For now, this new functionality is only available in selected countries.

This initiative is the result of a partnership between TikTok and several game studios, such as FRVR, Nitro Games, Vodoo, Lotem, and Aim Lab. The games can be incorporated into any video, with creators only having to select the ‘Add Link’ option and hit ‘minigame’.  In addition, the platform allows players to record their screens while playing so that they can publish their attempts as a TikTok video. Viewers will then be able to tap the link in the video and will be redirected to the game. Moreover, ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, had also previously announced it had bought Moonton Technology, a Shanghai-based game studio.

Image soruce: Sky

TikTok Enterting the Gaming Market

TikTok’s investment in games is part of a strategy that aims to encourage users to spend more time on the app, increasing advertising revenue. It’s no big surprise, obviously. This decision to enter the games market comes at a time when several social media and video streaming platforms have already begun exploring how they can participate in this increasingly expanding industry. 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, it’s been pretty clear over the last decade in particular that online gaming is only growing in popularity. Conventional video games, online gambling, and mobile gaming have attracted a new wave of users for their incorporation of new technological innovations. For instance, these days many online casino platforms feature immersive gaming experiences, such as live casinos. The advantage of this new and interactive form of gaming is that players can join virtual rooms and play with real dealers in real-time. Not only this, but the use of chat boxes to speak to other players within the game also enables users to authentically replicate the brick-and-mortar casino experience online.

Simultaneously, console gaming has become an increasingly niche market, offering more complex and narrative-based experiences. On the other hand, mobile gaming has steadily expanded to cover all sorts of game categories and themes, appealing to a wide range of users.

Image source: Pixels

In this sense, earlier this year, TikTok had already announced the creation of a subscription plan similar to that of Twitch. This strategy aimed to attract not only users but also content famous creators who could monetise their content and help TikTok rival other streaming platforms, including Facebook Games, YouTube Live, and Twitch.

A wider trend

While TikTok may be the latest social media app to introduce the game to its platform, it is certainly isn’t the first. Think back to ten years ago when Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook was known for its popular, albeit really annoying, games. At the time, the company invited several game studios to develop titles tailored for Facebook, resulting in immensely popular sagas such as FarmVille, Cityvilleand Candy Crush. You couldn’t sign in without a barrage of notifications that consisted of invites from every Tom, Dick and Harry, begging you to join in with the fun.

Years later and it seems that many of those same games have served as the ultimate inspiration for the new age of mobile gaming. More recently, the trend to enter the gaming market has even reached the streaming market, with Netflix adding original games to its platform, including titles inspired by some of its most popular hit shows.

The chatter on the street is that TikTok is also working on a new exclusive game, reportedly titled Disco Loco 3D. The game, which will be developed by Zenga, and recently purchased by Take-Two Interactive, will be a music and dance challenge and hasn’t been given an official release date.

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