Tapas is shutting down. Kakao Entertainment confirmed the closure, with service ending March 31, 2027, and users losing unlocked episodes and Ink balances with no transfer or refund path.
Kakao Entertainment confirmed on September 22, 2026 that it would close Tapas, the North American webtoon and webnovel platform it acquired in 2021. The company is also merging its two South Korean platforms, Kakao Page and Kakao Webtoon, into a single service centered on Kakao Page by the end of 2026. Tapas is the part of that consolidation with no migration path: an updated FAQ sets the end of service for March 31, 2027, and says unlocked episodes and unspent Ink become inaccessible that day.
Tapas stopped selling Ink and disabled free-currency earning on Oct. 1. Purchases cannot transfer to Kakao Page or Kakao Webtoon, and virtual currency is non-refundable. Personal data exports are available, but they exclude saved comics and files. Kakao Entertainment has not published a timeline for what happens to hosted titles, and it did not give those details in the press release.
The shutdown has left creators without a stated next step. TurtleMe, author of The Beginning After the End, wrote on his official X account that he is still in shock and does not know what comes next, and said he will do everything in his power to keep The Beginning After the End and Soul Forged going. According to Animehunch, neither Tapas employees nor the artists were told before Kakao went to the press. The platform hosts over 100,000 titles from 75,000 creators, per coverage of the closure.
The only recent Tapas item not tied to the shutdown is Witch's Garden, the roguelike action game from the similarly named South Korean developer Team Tapas, which is a separate entity. It released on PC via Steam on August 28 with a combat overhaul that removed the synergy system, and added a keyboard-and-mouse control mode plus Japanese voice acting through Chapter 5.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the cited Yomimono stories below, each itself
sourced, then editorially reviewed. Every
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Facts
- Announced
- shutdown (Kakao Entertainment to Shut Down Tapas and Kakao Webtoon) · 2026-10-03
- Announced
- shutdown · 2026-09-24
- Noted
- Tapas will end service on March 31, 2027 · 2026-10-02
- Noted
- unlocked episodes and unspent Ink balances become inaccessible on March 31, 2027 · 2026-10-02
- Noted
- Tapas stopped selling Ink and disabled free-currency earning on Oct. 1 · 2026-10-02
- Noted
- Purchases cannot transfer to Kakao Page or Kakao Webtoon and virtual currency is non-refundable · 2026-10-02
- Noted
- Personal data exports are available but exclude saved comics and files · 2026-10-02
- Noted
- over 100,000 titles from 75,000 creators · 2026-09-24
- Noted
- acquired by Kakao in 2021 in a deal valued at about USD 950 million · 2026-09-24
Connections
Structured graph also available as JSON at /public/entities/tapas.
CC BY 4.0.
6d ago
Kakao Entertainment will close its North American webtoon and webnovel platform Tapas and merge its two South Korean platforms, Kakao Page and Kakao Webtoon, into a single service centered on Kakao Page by the end of 2026. The company plans to notify publishers and rights holders about the Tapas shutdown on Tuesday, covering the service end date, content management and settlements, with no details yet on user refunds or how content and user data will be handled. In South Korea, the consolidation will gather content, user data and about 16,000 original IPs onto Kakao Page. Kakao Entertainment is expected to announce a detailed transition schedule for users of both services on September 29. Most Kakao Webtoon reading histories, remaining cash balances and unused paid reading passes are expected to transfer to Kakao Page, with separate guidance promised on which assets qualify and how the transfers work.
Oct 2
Tapas will end service on March 31, 2027, and an updated FAQ says unlocked episodes and unspent Ink balances become inaccessible that day. Tapas stopped selling Ink and disabled free-currency earning on Oct. 1. Purchases cannot transfer to Kakao Page or Kakao Webtoon, and virtual currency is non-refundable. Personal data exports are available but exclude saved comics and files.
Sep 24
TurtleMe, the author of The Beginning After the End, said the future of his series is unclear after Kakao Entertainment announced the shutdown of Tapas. Kakao confirmed the closure on September 22, 2026, with operations set to wind down by the end of the year. The press release did not give a timeline or explain what will happen to the titles hosted on the platform. According to Animehunch, neither Tapas employees nor the artists were told before Kakao went to the press. TurtleMe wrote on his official X account that he is still in shock and does not know what comes next. He said he will do everything in his power to keep The Beginning After the End and Soul Forged going, and asked readers to follow creators on their social accounts to keep supporting them beyond Tapas. The platform reportedly hosts over 100,000 titles from 75,000 creators.
Aug 5
South Korean developer Team Tapas announced on August 3 that the roguelike action game Witch's Garden will officially release on PC via Steam on August 28. The game, which entered early access in May 2025, follows Sil, a witch who uses large scissors to persuade lazy witches across a crumbling dream world called the Garden, aiming to hold a tea party to save it from crisis. The official release adds Epilogues 2 and 3, completing the story that began with Epilogue 1 in early access. The combat system is being overhauled: the existing synergy system, which encouraged repetitive cooldown-based skill use, is removed. Each skill, weapon, rune, and magical tool now has its own unique mechanics and role. For example, basic and giant scissors trigger critical hits on combo finishers, while broken scissors accumulate sharpness to 100% for all-critical attacks. A keyboard-and-mouse control mode, requested by players, is added as the default, with the old control scheme still selectable. Japanese voice acting for story content up to Chapter 5 is included. The price remains unchanged from early access, with a 30% discount planned for release. A beta test is targeted for mid-August.