The current Blizzard head, J. Allen Brack, has released a statement regarding the current turmoil surrounding the ban of the Hearthstone player Blitzchung. In it, there are some explanations regarding the punishment as well as the values of Blizzard.
Here’s what has happened so far: The Hearthstone player Blitzchung was banned for a year after his tournament victory, lost his Grandmaster title, and his prize money was revoked.
The reason for this was that he expressed support for the protests in Hong Kong during an interview. Many fans saw this as Blizzard bowing to China, and it sparked a shitstorm during which
- Mei from Overwatch became a symbol of the protests
- a popular Hearthstone caster left the team
- Blizzard employees protested against the measures
Now there is a response from the new Blizzard head J. Allen Brack.
After the Hong Kong shitstorm: Blizzard responds
Here’s what the response says: Brack assures in the response that Blizzard still stands by its values “Think globally, act responsibly, and every voice matters”. He explains in longer paragraphs why this ban occurred:
Over the weekend, Blitzchung used his platform to express his position on the situation in Hong Kong – contrary to the rules he acknowledged and understood. Therefore, we took action.
For the same reason, the casters were also punished, as they did not maintain the focus on the gaming event but instead drifted off topic. The official broadcast should focus “on the tournament”, and the official channels should concentrate on the game.
What about China? Brack further explains that the long-standing close ties with China had nothing to do with the decision:
The views that Blitzchung specifically expressed were NOT a factor in the decision we made. I want to be clear: our relationships in China did not influence our decision.
We have these rules to keep the focus on the game and the tournament so that a global audience has something to gain from it, and that was the only consideration in the actions we took. If it had been opposing views, delivered in the same controversial and deliberate manner, we would have reacted the same way.
This is how it goes on with Blitzchung and Blizzard
What is Blitzchung’s punishment now? In the response, it is stated that the punishment against Blitzchung has been reconsidered. They reacted too quickly, and the process was not appropriate.
Blitzchung played fairly and won, hence he will receive his prize money back. However, he violated the rules, which would entail a punishment. The ban has been shortened to six months. The same applies to the two casters.
In an unconfirmed comment from Discord, it is said that Blitzchung will keep his Grandmaster status. Once his ban expires, he may compete again as a Grandmaster.
This would significantly lessen the severity of the punishment.
What it all means for Blizzard: Blizzard’s image is still tarnished in the community. Whether and when the company will recover from this remains to be seen. BlizzCon 2019 could still be affected by this:
