Blizzard shuts down gaming services in China

Millions of gamers in China have to say goodbye to their beloved games as Blizzard decided to shut down services for some of their most popular games, including big titles such as World of Warcraft and Overwatch 2.

The Situation:

Under Chinese law, foreign developers are required to partner with domestic companies to have a game launch in the Chinese market, and even then, they are launched with much scrutiny and censorship. Blizzard decided to partner with NetEase Interactive Entertainment Limited, a Chinese IT company, back in 2008.

However, after 14 years of working together, both parties had a falling out. They could not come to terms with a new agreement, and in November of 2022, Blizzard announced that all services for their games in China would be shutting down. This includes popular titles like World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Starcraft.

The Issue:

Before the termination of their agreement, Blizzard was reportedly looking for new partners to distribute their games in the Chinese market, and asked NetEase for a 6 month extension, so as to not disrupt game services. However, NetEase rejected this extension, citing unfair treatment. Blizzard had not yet managed to find new partners, leading to the halt in services.

Both Blizzard and NetEase have issued statements essentially accusing the other party of this disagreement. NetEase has even gone as far as dismantling and smashing a World of Warcraft statue situated outside their building.

However, despite this bad blood between the two companies will still work together to keep one game running, which is Diablo Immortal, a mobile version of one of Blizzard’s most popular IPs.

In Conclusion:

Blizzard employees working for NetEase have since been disbanded, and it is unsure when Blizzard will resume their services in China once again. WoW general manager John Hight stated in December that Blizzard was in discussion with “a number of new distribution partners” and that the “process will continue until we find a viable solution”. Until that time, players in China will have no other option to access their favorite games.

Video Source: Asmongold Clips on Youtube.