Blizzard is backing down.
Earlier this week, Blizzard received criticism for their suspending an esports player, Ng “Blitzchung” Wai Chung, for saying “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution our times” during a recent interview. Chung lost $10,00 in earning and was suspended for 12 months. According to the competition rules, anything that brings a player into “public disrepute,” fends the public, or damages Blizzard’s image would lead to a ban and loss prize money. Now, according to CNN, Blizzard is returning the player’s prize money and lowering his suspension.
J. Allen Brack, president Blizzard Entertainment, responded to the controversy in a statement published Friday, “We’ve had a chance to pause, to listen to our community, and to reflect on what we could have done better. In hindsight, our process wasn’t adequate, and we reacted too quickly.”
Rod Breslau, an esports and gaming consultant, felt the response was not enough, “Activision Blizzard’s statement is totally inadequate given the circumstances. It took over five days for Activision Blizzard to finally give a response, much more than it took the NBA or Apple, and it can be argued they took the worst possible stance the three.”
This situation is one many involving businesses and their attempts to appease the Chinese government. The NBA and Apple have also been criticized in recent weeks. Check out the full report over on CNN.