Blizzard Apologizes for Mishandling Hong Kong Protests

Several weeks ago, Blizzard Entertainment suspended esports players who expressed support for pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. It started when 'Blitzchung' called for the liberation of Hong Kong in a Hearthstone post-game interview; the publisher-develop then took aim at other players.

Now, Blizzard admits it made a mistake and apologized during the opening ceremony at BlizzCon 2019. Gamers in attendance and those watching the live-stream witnessed J. Allen Brack, President of Blizzard, stand on stage and express regret.

"Blizzard had the opportunity to bring the world together in a tough Hearthstone esports moment a month ago, and we did not," he said. "We moved too quickly in our decision-making, and to make matters worse we were too slow to talk to all of you."

Brack continued by calling out the things he's most displeased with. He said Blizzard didn't meet its high standards, and the company also failed in its purpose.

Yet there wasn't any comment on Blitzchung's punishment or remedies to be offered. Blitzchung, who at least received his prize money, and other players will serve out their six-month suspensions. Just don't expect Blizzard to do much else. It appears the company wants to issue its apology and move on as quickly as possible.

The apology from Brack can be seen here:

Protests outside the Anaheim Convention Center continued after Blizzard's apology, though. The group included people dressed as Winnie the Pooh and other characters banned in China. Eurogamer spoke with some protesters at BlizzCon, and while appreciative of the apology, they want to see more done.

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"It's always a good start to know people are paying attention to us, that the pressure is working, but we need more from them," organizer Dayton Young told Eurogamer.

Blizzard, according to protesters, still needs to say why it suspended esports players in the first place. Some protesters are concerned that the company felt afraid that the Chinese government would ban its games without censoring the community. But, until a further explanation arrives, gamers can only speculate Blizzard's logic behind the decision and hope free speech won't be compromised again.