Overwatch, World of Warcraft & more taken offline in China today

Blizzard’s games will no longer be available in China following a grim disagreement with its local publishing partner. The dispute also led to the ruin of a massive World of Warcraft statue.

For the past 14 years, US developer Blizzard has worked with NetEase to run its servers in China. The two companies have both had tremendous success and become leaders in their respective industries.

But all good things must come to an end, right? It was recently revealed that the deal would not be renewed again, with each company publicly blaming the other for the split.

In a crime of passion last week, NetEase employees teamed up to tear down a statue of Gorehowl from World of Warcraft. The monument had previously been adored as a physical reminder of their relationship with Blizzard.

Little comfort for the grinders

So, this means popular Blizzard games, including Overwatch, World of Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo 3 and Hearthstone will be taken offline in China – at least until they find a new publisher.

Devastating news for the millions of players who have dedicated years to “the craft”.

However, Chinese Warcraft fans have been given the option to download their characters and progress. If and when Blizzard finds a new deal, they would be able to upload this data and pick up where they left off.

NetEase has released a statement explaining its thoughts on the feud. They didn’t hold back, accusing Blizzard of behaving like someone who is “divorced but still trying to live together”. I’d say a make-up is unlikely…

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