Social media platform TikTok is testing out letting users play games through its app, Reuters reported Thursday.
The tests are currently running in Vietnam, according to Reuters' four sources familiar with the initiative. TikTok would eventually roll the feature out to other parts of Southeast Asia as early as the third quarter of 2022. Plans to expand further, should they exist, remain under wraps.
TikTok confirmed to Reuters it had tested HTML5 games via its app â tie-ups with third-party game developers and studios such as Zynga, per Reuters' sources â but declined to comment on the Vietnam test or its future plans.
"We're always looking at ways to enrich our platform and regularly test new features and integrations that bring value to our community," a TikTok representative told Reuters in a statement.
TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, has long angled to enter the video game market. In November, it underwent a corporate restructuring that saw it form a dedicated gaming unit. TikTok's games would likely draw on ByteDance's library of titles, beginning with simple minigames and later encompassing more ambitious titles.
