In Taiwan, one of the most successful MMORPGs is closing in just a few days. However, players are celebrating it heroically for that very reason. The reason for the closure is a conflict with the Chinese developer, who wanted to restrict freedom of expression.
What happened? A national day of mourning for COVID-19 and Dr. Li Wenliang, who was one of the first to warn about the virus, took place in China on April 4th. During this time, all entertaining activities were suspended, including video games.
The Chinese developer of the MMORPG JX3 Online, King Soft, did the same and also asked the Taiwanese publisher, WANIN, to do so. However, WANIN decided only to conduct a three-hour maintenance and then turned the game back on.
This led to in-game discussions among players about Corona, Dr. Li Wenliang, and China. King Soft attempted to suppress these discussions, resulting in some absurdly long bans. However, WANIN would unban players. The conflict escalated and now leads to a shutdown on May 5, 2020 (via JX3 Taiwan).
The game is also referred to as “Chinese WoW,” even though WoW itself is also popular and successful in China.
The colleagues from MMOByte took a look at the MMORPG in a livestream, in case you want to get an overview of the game:
“We can be representatives of the game, but not of opinion suppression”
What happened in detail? In the MMORPG subreddit, user Cut1000 reported what transpired. He himself is from Taiwan but was not online during the event:
- After it became known that the Taiwanese servers of JX3 were active again, players began to discuss in-game.
- The discussions revolved around why COVID-19 was not referred to as the Wuhan virus, and some conversations grew emotional. The relationship between China and Taiwan has been tense for a long time.
- King Soft, the Chinese developer, reportedly banned players for up to 10 years.
- Players reacted by spamming all chats with something about Wuhan, China, and the coronavirus.
- King Soft, in turn, reportedly disabled all channels, including whispers. Subsequently, character names, guild messages, and everything that contained text were changed.
- King Soft reportedly contacted the publisher WANIN, who according to the reddit user replied: “We can be representatives of the game, but not of opinion suppression.”
- As a result, King Soft is said to have canceled the contract, and the servers of JX3 must close in Taiwan. However, the MMORPG continues to operate in China.
WANIN itself published a statement regarding freedom of speech on their website. We have included an image of it along with the admittedly awkward German Google translation:
Additionally, the publisher announced that recent purchases for real money would be refunded.
How are players reacting? Cut1000 reports that many players view WANIN’s step very positively. It is rare for a company in Taiwan to stand up against China.
Players have therefore pledged their loyalty to the publisher and want to play other titles from them. Some see it as the perfect PR, while others are happy that basic rights are being upheld.
