知名遊戲公司暴雪 (Blizzard) 一年一度最重要的遊戲嘉年華 BlizzCON 19 於今 (2) 日凌晨正式登場,在開幕式之中,暴雪現任總裁 J. Allen Brack 剛上來就提到了最近鬧得沸沸揚揚的《爐石戰記》聰哥處分事件,並直接承認了他們的錯誤:「我們太快做出決策了,更糟糕的是,我們太慢與其他人交換意見了。我們曾有機會將整個世界團結在一起,但我們失敗了。」
整起事件於這個月月初爆發之後,暴雪很快地宣布了對香港選手 BlitzChung 以及主播賽評的嚴格處分,然後引起了整個玩家社群的不滿,引發了拒玩暴雪遊戲的風潮。而雖然事後總裁 J. Allen Brack 在新的官方聲明中調降了處分,然而似乎仍然無法平息輿論的怒火。在剛剛的 BlizzCON 19 開幕式上,J. Allen Brack 提到了這一次的事件並公開道歉,他表示:「我們太快做出決策且太慢與其他人交換意見,我們沒有達到自己所設定的高標準。我們有機會透過這個事件將整個世界結合在一起,但我們並沒有。」,隨後他為這起事件公開道歉。
這樣的道歉也引起了現場觀眾的歡呼,然而是否能夠讓會場外那些準備抗議與聲援聰哥的民眾們買單?或許就跟 J. Allen Brack 所說的一樣:「我們承諾會做得更好,然而,我知道我們的行動遠比我們所說的任何話都還要重要。」
作者: :
Blizzard Entertainment via Polygon
Blizzard has spoken twice about its decision to suspend Hong Kong Hearthstone player Ng “blitzchung” Wai Chung — first, when it suspended the player, and later, when it shortened his punishment.
Now, during the BlizzCon 2019 opening ceremony in Anaheim, California, the company has addressed ongoing criticism it has faced since then. Blizzard president J. Allen Brack appeared at the event to talk about the ongoing controversy — though on a time delay of multiple minutes for at-home viewers.
“We moved too quickly in our decision, and then, to make matters worse, we were too slow to talk with all of you,” Brack said. “We didn’t live up to the high standards we set for ourselves. We failed in our purpose.”
Brack continued:
I am sorry and I accept accountability. What exactly is our purpose? BlizzCon is demonstrating it as we speak. We aspire to bring the world together in epic entertainment. I truly believe in the positive power of video games.
When we get it right, we create a common ground where the community comes together to compete, connect, and play, irrespective of the things that divide us. BlizzCon has people from 59 countries all around the world at the show today. That is amazing. That is the positive power of video games — to transcend divisions around us. We will do better going forward. But our actions are going to matter more than any of these words. As you walk around this weekend, I hope it’s clear how committed we are to people expressing themselves.
We’ve seen many of you expressing yourselves this morning.
Today you’re going to see a lot of the hard work of the Blizzard team. I am personally so proud of what we are building and I hope you love it too. Thank you for joining us.
Blizzard did not speak directly about blitzchung, nor did it note any decision to adjust his punishment further.
Previously, Brack said blitzchung played fairly during his match, but that his on-stream statements were against the rules. “Every Voice Matters, and we strongly encourage everyone in our community to share their viewpoints in the many places available to express themselves,” Brack wrote. “However, the official broadcast needs to be about the tournament and to be a place where all are welcome. In support of that, we want to keep the official channels focused on the game.”
He added that Blizzard’s relationships in China had no bearing on its decision to punish blitzchung. In the aftermath of Blizzard’s decision, players, employees, and politicians are furious — protests began at BlizzCon this morning, but boycotts have been ongoing all month.
The Taiwanese branch of the Japanese auto giant had been a sponsor of all of Blizzard’s esports events, but just two days after the decision to sanction Blitzchung for his actions, they withdrew their support. A Mitsubishi Motors Taiwan spokesperson confirmed the move to The Daily Beast, which had first been noticed by Reddit users earlier in the month when the company’s logo and models of its vehicles stopped appearing alongside casters.
A reminder that BlizzCon, the company’s annual fan gathering, starts this Friday.
BlizzCon 2019では、入場口となっているヒルトンホテル横の特設テント前に、「Mei with HongKong」と印刷されたTシャツを配る人、マスクをつけてプラカードを掲げる人が集まり「やはり」という光景が展開されていた。メイは「オーバーウォッチ」に登場するキャラクター。中国出身という設定を持つ彼女は、「ハースストーン」での事件が起きて以来、香港デモの象徴的なキャラクターとして使用されている。
作者: :
BECKY QUICK: You know, Bobby, what has been your experience as expectations for CEOs and for leadership, I think, have -- they have really ratcheted up, I think in part because politicians aren’t doing as much. I think people are turning to business leaders and expecting them to lead on a variety of subjects, and that can take you anywhere from Hong Kong and democracy to gaming additions and beyond. How do you grow into that role? What do you do?
BOBBY KOTICK: Well, you start with, our mission as a company is “Bringing the World Together Through Epic Entertainment.” You know, that’s a big mission. It has some similarities to, let’s say, a Facebook. But, you know, we’re not the operator of the world’s town halls. We’re the operator of the communities that allow you to have fun through the lens of a video game. And you know, I -- my responsibility is to make sure that our communities feel safe, secure, comfortable and satisfied and entertained. And so I don’t -- I don’t -- that doesn’t convey to me the right to have a platform for a lot of political views, I don’t think. I think my responsibility is to satisfy our audiences and our stakeholders, our employees, our shareholders. But I think there are some business people who are incredible examples of character and integrity and principle and have what you see are the great attributes of leadership, and I think that they are incredibly inspiring for me. But I think, you know, they do have the right to articulate views and visions and voices about government and policy and politics, and I love engaging with those people.