Blizzard Games, the developer of Heartstone, World Of Warcraft and overwatch among other notable games is facing public backlash after removing pro player ‘Blitzchung’ from tournaments and future events. This ban came shortly after he voiced support for the Hong Kong protests during a post-game interview.
Now, gamers and esports fans are boycotting the company. BlizzCon’ a highly anticipated annual convention run by the company’s entertainment division.on Oct 9 the tweet ‘#boybottblizard’ went viral.
here’s news on the latest controversy and what to expect.
what are the protests in Hong Kong about?
In June, mass protests began in Hong Kong over a controversial proposed law, now suspended, that would’ve allowed for the extradition of residents to countries around the world, including China. People feared this would let the Chinese government apprehend people in Hong Kong and send them to mainland China to be subjected to a far stricter legal system. protesters have since taken to the street and even the Hong Kong International Airport and the debate has grown to want democracy. this has caused multiple conflicts with and within the law enforcement of Hong Kong.
Why are people boycotting Blizard among other major companies?
it’s not just blizzard caught up in this political dispute, other major companies such as Apple, Google, and even the NBA are caught in an uneasy tension between China and Hong Kong.
following his (Blitzchung) win during the Asia-Pacific Grandmasters tournament the gas mask-wearing professional gamer voiced a statement used by the protesters in Hong Kong: “Liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our age!” Blizzard announced that Blitzchung ha violated the tournaments’ strict rules and guidelines and war removed from the tournament and received a 12-month ban from all blizzard run competitions.
“While we stand by one’s right to express individual thoughts and opinions,” the statement continued, “players and other participants that elect to participate in our esports competitions must abide by the official competition rules.”
this, however, is quite different from the statement made on the Chinese social media platform ‘weibo’ displaying a MUCH harsher tone on the matter.
“We express our strong indignation [or resentment] and condemnation of the events that occurred in the Hearthstone Asia Pacific competition last weekend and absolutely oppose the dissemination of personal political ideas during any events [or games]. The players involved will be banned, and the commentators involved will be immediately terminated from any official business. Also, we will protect [or safeguard] our national dignity [or honor].” – source Rod Breslau twitter
shortly after these statements Blitzchung’s ban was reduced to 6 months and he was permitted the winnings from his previous tournaments, the casters who mediated the conversation in the post-game interview had their resignation redacted and instead received a 3-month ban.
the events we saw were prime examples of chinas economy and its effect and power over the major companies that power our world. Blizzard’s actions were most likely due to it being in the company’s best interest to keep China as a trade partner due to the economic flow of income it brings in to the company with regular large scale tournaments and promotions of the brand. despite chinas support, the company was subject to a substantial loss of income due to this incident and is steadily recovering but its brand name has been tainted due to this incident and has resulted in the discontinuation of Toyotas sponsorship with the overwatch league.
Year 11 MHS Economics 2020 