blizz hong kong drama
Not So Massively: Reflections on Blizzard, one year after the Hong Kong fiasco
Almost exactly a year ago, I declared that the Blizzard I loved is dead, in reaction to the Blitzchung/Hearthstone/Hong Kong fiasco.
Twelve months later, that...
Leaderboard: Four months after the Blitzchung Hong Kong mess, are you still boycotting Blizzard?
MOP reader Pepperzine recently dropped us an email about Blizzard that we've put off until today very intentionally. Why? Because tomorrow, Activision-Blizzard releases its...
Blitzchung: No regrets for speaking up for Hong Kong despite Hearthstone suspension
Chung Ng Wai, better known as Blitzchung, took a big risk when he spoke out in support of Hong Kong on an official Hearthstone stream....
Activision-Blizzard’s Bobby Kotick downplays the role of politics in games
Activision-Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick clearly doesn't fear the Blizzard boycott that is still technically ongoing following Blizzard's October decision to penalize a Hearthstone esports...
J. Allen Brack says the Blitzchung incident ‘exposed some immaturity’ in Blizzard
It's a bit long in the tooth now with BlizzCon well behind us, but the Esports Observer published an interview with Blizzard's J. Allen...
Overwatch’s Jeff Kaplan thinks Blizzard’s Blitzchung punishment was too harsh
Last week, it was players, game industry leaders, and congress against Blizzard in the matter of Hearthstone player Blitzchung's sentencing over pro-Hong Kong statements....
Vague Patch Notes: Ethics, PR stunts, and the BlizzCon apology
Are you all really tired of talking about ethics and Blizzard in the same sentence? I am too, but a large part of that...
BlizzCon protesters remain unmoved by Blizzard apology as industry groups propose unified esports principles
If anyone was curious, no, many of the folks who protested BlizzCon live and in the flesh were not swayed by Blizzard President J....
Even some Hearthstone devs thought Blizzard overreacted in the Hearthstone fiasco
I'm willing to bet most people here had never heard of Blitzchung until a month ago when Blizzard and its compilation of allied companies...
Despite BlizzCon apology, Blizzard stands behind ‘Hong Kong liberation’ suspensions
In case you missed it, BlizzCon's World of Warcraft Q&A session this afternoon was peppered with a few vocal protesters who both wore pro-Hong...
BlizzCon 2019: Here’s Blizzard’s apology for its Hearthstone esports disaster
Blizzard's Hearthstone Hong Kong fiasco was very much on our minds this morning as the Massively OP team prepared for BlizzCon, and we were...
Mitsubishi dropped its Blizzard esports sponsorship following the Hong Kong fiasco
Were you thinking Blizzard was going to just coast into BlizzCon as if its "international incident" hadn't gripped the whole damn industry for a...
Lawful Neutral: What’s China really worth to the Western gaming industry?
You know what we never talk about these days? China and video games! We should do that more. For example, did you know that...
Complete coverage of Blizzard’s ‘Hong Kong liberation’ Blitzchung fiasco
In October of 2019, Blizzard made international news headlines when it banned a Hong Kong Hearthstone esports pro and two Taiwanese contracted casters over...
US politicians chastise Activision-Blizzard for its handling of the Hong Kong fiasco
If Blizzard thought its Hong Kong liberation fiasco couldn't possibly get worse than international headlines, a wide-ranging boycott, Riot Games' public pity, and a...
Riot Games expresses ’empathy’ for Blizzard after its Hong Kong fiasco
One might wonder why, possessed as it was of a pretty good week of announcements, Riot Games would willingly put Blizzard's One Ring on...
Massively Overthinking: Are you boycotting Blizzard?
Tyler's piece this week about the Blizzard he loved being dead actually brought tears to my eyes. It hurts to lose a game and...
Blizzard finally decides to ban the college Hearthstone team that called for a Blizzard boycott too
Did it bother you that Blizzard had punished Blitzchung over his Hong Kong liberation stunt but planned to permit American University players who similarly...
WoW Factor: Blizzard’s nonpology and the ethics of boycotting
Last time we were here, we discussed the intensely shoddy ethics of Blizzard's behavior surrounding the banning of Hearthstone professional Ng "Blitzchung" Wai Chang....
Massively OP Podcast Episode 242: And then Blizzard said, ‘Hold my beer’
Justin, Bree, and Eliot discuss the Blizzard boytcott and fiasco, the Daybreak layoffs, Shroud of the Avatar's sell-off, the Guild Wars 2 hacker piece, and a few happier stories too.