The ramifications of Blizzard’s PR misstep

The company’s punishment of a pro-gaming Hong Kong supporter rustled millions of feathers, writes Shaun Prescott.

It’s hard to tell if Blizzard knew how much crap it was stepping into. In mid-October, Hearthstone pro gamer Chung ‘Blitzchung’ Ng Wai gave an interview during a Hearthstone Grandmasters tournament stream, during which he donned a gas mask and goggles, and then shouted “liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our age!”. He was suddenly disconnected from the stream, and hours later, Blizzard announced that the pro would be suspended from competitive Hearthstone for 12 months, and that his prize money would be forfeited. This punishment was meted out in keeping with its Hearthstone Grandmasters competition rules, which forbid 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’s image…”

This elicited an outpouring that no one expected. Hong Kong has been awash in protests, sometimes violent, for the better part of this year. Initially prompted by a new amendment bill which would allow the extradition of criminals to mainland China, it’s quickly evolved into a broader battle between Hong Kong’s democracy and China’s authoritarianism.

At least, that’s the best way to read the vicious response to Blizzard’s move. Social media powerfully condemned Blizzard, as did a handful of employees of the California company. A lot of the criticism stems from the perception that Blizzard seeks to appease China, free speech be damned: not only are some of its games popular in China, but Chinese entertainment behemoth Tencent owns a five percent stake in the company. Alienating China risks having its games unceremoniously pulled from the region, which isn’t ideal since around 12 percent of Blizzard’s revenue comes from Asia-Pacific.

Of course, capitalism’s usually tonedeaf profit motive rarely yields: no amount of free speech crusading and anti-China sentiment among western gamers is going to compel Blizzard to step away from that 12 percent revenue. And if it was any other gaming company perhaps the anguish would have been milder, because Blizzard has been awash in an (admittedly milder) PR disaster for over 12 months now.

This time last year, remember, the announcement of a new Diablo smartphone game at BlizzCon was met with widespread aggrievement. With its steadfast PC-owning user base already feeling disenfranchised, it’s no surprise that Blitzchung’s suspension was met with such a conflagration.

Was Blizzard in the wrong? Perhaps it quietly believes so: it later reduced Blitzchung’s suspension to six months, and agreed to reward him his prize money. But unemotionally speaking, it’s hardly Blizzard’s fault that it seeks to make bank in one of the biggest markets in the world, and with the rapid ascent of China in general, it’s a moral / ethical quandary that will keep happening, probably with increasing regularity. No amount of lip service – whether it be major brands cashing in on progressive causes, or tech companies greenwashing their products – can change the fact that capitalism is an inherently cold business. No doubt many, if not most, of the people working at Blizzard feel conflicted about the ordeal, but modern capitalism permits no colour gradations.