It appears that Blizzard Entertainment is attempting to make sure its rules are now implemented across the board, following in the wake of Blitzchung’s ban for supporting Hong Kong. After that event occurred there were protests and shows of support for Hong Kong. The Hearthstone team from American University taking the action of holding a sign during one of their matches which expressed their support for Hong Kong. While Blitzchung was banned almost immediately for his support the American University team had no such sanctions.
That is until now. Nine days after expressing support for Hong Kong team member Casey Chambers confirmed that he and his teammates has received a ban from Blizzard for the same rule violation that was used to enforce Blitzchung’s ban.
Happy to announce the AU Hearthstone team received a six month ban from competition. While delayed I appreciate all players being treated equally and no one being above the rules. pic.twitter.com/mZStoF0e0t
— Casey Chambers (@Xcelsior_GU) October 16, 2019
The email from Blizzard Entertainment is just as strange as its statement regarding the original situation. Once again the company mentions its value of Every Voice Matters but then states it comes with caveats. People are free to express their opinions anywhere as long as it isn’t during a Blizzard tournament. Blizzard has the right to ban types of speech from its platforms yet it does also fly in the face of the value it purports to uphold.
Blizzard is fully aware of the backlash it has been facing. It recently cancelled a launch event for Overwatch on Switch in New York likely due to the probability of protests. However, Blizzcon will be taking place soon and it is very unlikely that will be cancelled.
Source: Twitter
