Blizzard president J. Allen Brack has apologized about the situation that took place a few weeks ago but hasn’t changed his stance on the suspension.
What happened?
Blizzard, the game developer for many popular online games like Hearthstone and Overwatch, suspended a professional Hearthstone player from Blizzard esports events when he stated a pro-Hong Kong sentiment during a post-game interview. Blizzard also suspended the two broadcasters that were interviewing the player when he made the remarks.
Chung “blitzchung” Ng Wai was being interviewed during a live broadcast of a Blizzard Hearthstone esports tournament. Since the suspension, Blizzard has faced severe backlash from fans, sparking protests and online debate. The most prominent issues people have with Blizzard’s decision is the developer stifling free speech, as well as being controlled by Chinese money.
What was the apology?
J. Allen Brack apologized to a massive crowd during the opening ceremony of Blizzcon 2019, the annual gaming convention put on by Blizzard.
Brack said to the crowd. “We moved too quickly in our decision making, and then, to make matters worse, we were too slow to talk with all of you.”
He went on to ensure that Blizzard’s primary goal is to unite gamers from all walks of life by creating fabulous games. He wanted the attention to shift back to what it should be on during a gaming convention, Blizzard’s games.
One thing that was missing during the apology was a direct reference about blitzchung or the whole Hong Kong controversy.
If you want to hear the whole apology, here is a video of it:
What is J. Allen Brack’s position on the blitzchung suspension?
PC Gamer’s Steven Messner conducted a phone interview with Brack after the public apology, intending to get some clarity on Brack’s position on blitzchung and his current six-month suspension.
Messner held back no punches during the interview, getting right to the question. The discussion starts with Messner asking the president if he was going to repeal the suspension of blitzchung and the two broadcasters.
Brack answered with a direct answer, “we are not.”
Blizzard’s president then elaborated on his reasoning. He stressed that Blizzard is very pro-free speech and that it wasn’t the message that blitzchung portraued that led to the suspension.
Brack was quite clear that Blizzard’s goal with esports events is to keep them just about gaming. They do not want to have any political message from the gamers, no matter what their stance is.
Blizzard acted on blitzchung as they want to send a message to all the esports gamers that politics has no place in a gaming league. Brack told PC Gamer, “if we hadn’t done something, you can imagine the trail that would be in our future around doing interviews.”
Blitzchung has become an example that Blizzard wants gamers to take seriously. Brack is
hoping that with this suspension, any political dialogue will be left at the front door during these events.
The interviewed ended with Messner asking specifically about the two broadcasters. Initially, Blizzard had made a statement that they will no longer work with the two individuals. However, Brack confirmed that they would only serve a sixth-month suspension and they will retain employment. The Blizzard president was clear that he felt the broadcasters did not do enough to deviate the conversation away from politics.
During the interview, Brack was quite clear on his stance, and Blizzard’s stance as a whole. People may not agree with the decision; however, it is good to hear all sides of the conflict.
If you want to read the whole transcript of the phone interview by PC Gamer’s Steven Messner, head over to pcgamer.com
