Blizzard finally spoke up on ?? ??? ??Friday after nearly a week of upheaval on the professional Hearthstonecircuit. But before we can get into that, it's important to understand what let to Friday's statement.
It all started on Monday when pro player Chung "Blitzchung" Ng Wai used an appearance on an official stream to make a political statement. Blitzchung, who had been competing in the Hearthstone Grandmasters tournament, appeared on the Taiwanese stream wearing a gas mask and said "Liberate Hong Kong. Revolution of our age!"
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The mask and the statement both were direct responses to the civil unrest that has unfolded across Hong Kong in recent months. It's a complicated situation that merits an explanation of its own.
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Hong Kong is a former British colony that exists now as a "special administrative region" of China, which basically means it has its own government and economic system. The protests, which started in June as a response to a proposed law that would have allowed the extradition of local criminals to mainland China – effectively diminishing Hong Kong's autonomy – have since escalated to include a general call for a more democratic form of governance.
Pro-democracy demonstrators have used an assortment of masks to conceal their identity at public gatherings, and it's led to a ban on such behavior. So Blitzchung's use of a mask and "Liberate Hong Kong" statement amounts to a declaration of support for the protests, and a stand against mainland China.
Shortly after Blitzchung's appearance on the stream – the official version of which was quickly removed – Blizzard took its first action. The company found that the protest action violated a competition rule against "engaging in any act that, in Blizzard’s sole discretion, brings you into public disrepute, offends a portion or group of the public, or otherwise damages Blizzard image."
It's worth noting here that there's a massive market for video games in China, and Activision Blizzard in particular has a big investment in the region. What's more, the Chinese company Tencent has a 5 percent ownership stake in the American company. (More broadly, Tencent has invested heavily in U.S.-based gaming interests over the years.) These details are going to be important soon.
As punishment, Blitzchung was removed from the HearthstoneGrandmasters competition. He also had to forfeit his prize money for the current season, including anything he'd won so far. Blizzard also imposed on him a 12-month ban from participating in Hearthstoneesports. Lastly, the company confirmed that it would no longer work with the two men who were interviewing Blitzchung when he delivered his protest action.
Blizzard finally spoke up on Friday after a week of upheaval on the professional Hearthstone circuit.
Few disputed the text of the competition rules, but many criticized Blizzard for the heavy-handedness of its punishment. One Hearthstone"caster" (an esports commentatory), Brian Kibler, summed up the broad response to the ruling very well in a Medium post.
"The punishment meted out to Blitzchung is incredibly harsh," Kibler wrote. "I could understand a fine, or even a short suspension from competitive play, but removal from Grandmasters, clawing back the prizes he already earned, and banning him for a full year seems completely overboard to an extent that feels completely unwarranted and unfair."
He went on to acknowledge Blizzard's ties to China, writing: "I won’t pretend to understand either the intricacies of the geopolitical situation in China and Hong Kong or the full extent of Blizzard’s business interests there, but to me this penalty feels like it is deeply rooted in both."
Kibler ended the post with the revelation that he's severing his relationship as a caster with Blizzard, at least for the time being.
"When I learned about the ruling, I reached out to Blizzard and informed them that I no longer feel comfortable casting the Grandmasters finals at BlizzCon. I will not be a smiling face on camera that tacitly endorses this decision. Unless something changes, I will have no involvement in Grandmasters moving forward."
Kibler wasn't alone in criticizing Blizzard's actions following the Blitzchung ruling. And on Friday, finally, the company released a longer statement attributed to Blizzard president J. Allen Brack.
The statement amounts to a lengthy defense of the company's actions on Tuesday, as well as an admission that mistakes were made. Blitzchung's suspension from competitive Hearthstonewas shortened to six months, and the two casters who spoke with him also received similar six-month bans.
It didn't go over well. Brack was quickly criticized for referencing Blizzard's core values of "think globally; lead responsibly" and "every voice matters" in a statement where he was also essentially upholding actions taken against a player who voiced a political stance. The thinking goes that while every voice does matter to Blizzard, an official tournament broadcast ought to focus on the tournament and nothing else.
It's a fair point. Putting aside the extreme punishment handed down initially, Blitzchung's actions did fall afoul of tournament rules, though that rule notably leaves the determination to "Blizzard's sole discretion." But Brack was criticized for taking the matter even further to directly comment on the China of it all.
"The specific views expressed by blitzchung were NOT a factor in the decision we made," he wrote. "I want to be clear: our relationships in China had no influence on our decision."
Lots of people aren't buying it. Brack doesn't offer any further details to support that claim, and all evidence to the contrary suggests that Blitzchung's initial punishment, widely viewed as overly harsh, was in fact directly informed by Blizzard's interests in China. Perhaps there's a literal interpretation that the Tencent relationship didn't influence the decision, but as many have pointed out, it stretches believability to suggest that financial concerns weren't at the heart of the decision.
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Topics Activism Esports Gaming