The eve of BlizzCon approaches, and multiple 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Overwatch 2 leaks all but confirm the announcement of a new game. But will that be enough to appease, or even bring back, those players who left Blizzard in the wake of the Hong Kong🔜 controversy involving Chung “Blitzchun𝓀g” Ng Wai?
Since Blitzchung first made his statement supporting Hong Kong when he was supposed to be giving an interview during a 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Hearthstone Grandmaster event, he has been banned and had his earnings revoked by Blizzard. That punishment was subsequently reduced, but the damage to Blizzard’s reputation was done. The internet was aflame with commentary demanding that Blizzard desist from putting the intereℱsts of the Chinese Government ahead of its international players.
Since then, the consequences have been real and ongoing. Streamers and players have quit or taken leave of Blizzard games for a while. Other players have made similar statements in live broadcasts, such as during the American Collegiate Hearthstone Championship. 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Brian Kibler, one of the most well-known casters of the game and others like 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Magic: The Gathering, formally announced that he will not be working with Blizzard while this behavior remains the norm, and even some US 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:lawmakers have publicly den💎ou🍃nced the disciplinary action made against Blitzchung.
Blizzard Remains Silent, Mostly
Blizzard has been fairly quiet in the weeks since the ban, only speaking about its upcoming convention and drumming up hype for the event. It𒈔 seems that silence has been the best option for the company since it can't outright deny the criticisms levied against it, and the strategy appears to be one of attempting to have the best of both worlds, which is to say, showing loyalty to the lucrative C🐭hinese market and appeasing the rest of the world as well.
October has seen several leaks for 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2, and one would b🍃e forgiven for thinking that these were more intentional than not. Blizzard certainly needed some positive press to take away from all the negativity that it brought on itself.
Will Overwatch 2 Help?
There is no easy answer here. Overwatch as a competitive esport has seen only growth in the past year in terms of viewership, and the game appears to be in a healthy state. BlizzCon is an event that will be attended by only the most diehard Blizzard fans, and reactions to new games from attendees should be predictably positive. Unless, in its infinite wisdom, Blizzard decides that 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Diablo Immortal is again sufficient to carry the event like in 💞2018.
The unkno✱wn factor here is how far Blizzard may have pushed its consumers away with its political maneuvers. There is little reason to believe that the announcement of any game can undo the permanent damage that has been done, regardless of how much hype it receives and how long some fans may have been asking for these titles.
In today’s call-out culture, people are outraged almost every week by some new offense and quick to publicly shame a group for their actions, and it is difficult to tell what the future holds. A similar term, cancel culture, exists to refer to the idea of boycotting a person or orga⛎nization that has made a questionable decision, which is perhaps a better term for what consumers could do to Blizzard.
With that said, Blizzard is not the only organization to tailor its business model and policies towards appeasing the Chinese government, ♛as the potential for revenue and business expansion is unparalleled to most other markets. On October 21, Apple CEO Tim Cook was named of the advisory board for the Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management in China, and despite the ongoing Hong Kong protests for democracy, outcry over Cook’s move remains non-existent.
The list of organizations working to enter the Chinese market is long, and while there are certainly a portion of consumers who may take the action against Blitzchung to heart, it is equally likely that most will put aside or simply forget their feelings when it comes to time to purchase a popular new game like Overwatch 2 or Diablo 4.
On the other hand, Blizzard’s behavior has probably pushed some consumers away entirely, and no new game is going to reverse that damage done. Time will tell if these actions will be remembered or forgotten by players. But since Blizzard does seem to be sticking to its guns and favoring the Chinese government over fans, it seems like only a matter of time before another scandal arises – and consumers will be reminded of why they were angry in the first place. Ultimately the success of Overwatch 2 and the future of Blizzard may hinge on how well it can manage its iꦏmage and stay away from controversy near the time when a new game is set to release.
At the end of the day, those who run Blizzard are mainly co🧸ncerned with profits, and many players may simply want to play a fun game and forget about why they were so outraged in the first place.
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