Recently, Overwatch game director Jeff Kaplan suggested that Hearthstone pro player Chung “blitzchung” Ng Wai should have his Blizzard suspension reduced even further or outright eliminated, a strange show of solidarity that goes against what the company has been preaching at large regarding the Hong Kong controversy that has persisted since the company had the player suspended in the first place. Blitzchung’s story began with the player expressing pro-Hong Kong sentiment, supporting the protests taking place there, and quickly garnered global attention when Blizzard punished him by suspending him and revoking the prize money he had earned.
From there, things spiraled out of control quickly, despite the fact that Blizzard walked back its harsh punishment of blitzchung to a somewhat-more reasonable six-month suspension and, more importantly, the return of his hard-earned cash. Fans all over the world were still outraged with Blizzard’s support of China’s censorship of free speech, however, so much so that a major Blizzard esports sponsor pulled out of their competitions and fans began lining up protests for BlizzCon 2019. While those protests never generated as much visibility for the struggles in Hong Kong as supporters would have liked, they did inspire what amounted to one of the worst apologies of 2019 when Blizzard president J. Allen Brack vaguely stated that the company moved too quickly on blitzchung’s punishment while never mentioning Hong Kong at all.
That’s why it was so interesting that Jeff Kaplan was so open about how he felt regarding the blitzchung situation during an interview with The Washington Post. Kaplan, who is also Blizzard’s vice president, stated that he was “relieved” when the player’s suspension was reduced, but also stated that he felt it wasn’t enough, suggested that “the suspension should be reduced more or eliminated” before caveating that with an acknowledgement that it’s just his opinion. Kaplan expanded on his stance:
It’s yet another example of how Blizzard employees themselves might not agree with the policies of the company at large, and why personal attacks on those employees are completely unwarranted. Blizzard staff staged a walkout earlier this year during the early stages of the Hong Kong controversy, and it sounds as though Kaplan also feels the company’s actions were too harsh and sent the wrong message to fans.
“I’m obviously a huge supporter of free speech. It’s something that’s very important to me. It [blitzchung’s suspension] got to me personally. I think the punishment was too harsh and I was greatly relieved when they gave his money back.”
Obviously, fans can’t really know what goes on behind closed doors and how much say any given person has in these decisions - Kaplan himself alluded to the Overwatch team’s suspension policies, suggesting he had no input on the Hearthstone side of things. Still, it’s nice to see that some employees, especially those with power, have continued to support blitzchung even after the player himself suggested he was okay with the punishment he was given. It’s not a fix for how poorly Blizzard continues to handle its relationship with China and, specifically, Hong Kong, but it’s a step in the right direction.
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Source: The Washington Post
