Several Activision Blizzard employees staged a walkout yesterday to protest the ban of Hong Kong Hearthstone player Chung “Blitzchung” Ng Wai, according to The Daily Beast.
The walkout reportedly began at 12pm CT near the Orc statue on Blizzard’s campus in Irvine, California. As a display of disapproval with the company’s decision to ban Blitzchung and strip him of his Grandmasters prize earnings because of comments supporting Hong Kong independence, the protest had about a dozen to 30 people involved throughout the work day, two Blizzard employees told The Daily Beast.
Presumably, these same employees were the ones who covered the placards with Blizzard’s core values, which included “Think Globally” and “Every Voice Matters.”
Many people, including those not even involved in gaming, have come to the defense of Blitzchung, who said “liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times” during a post-game interview on a Grandmasters stream. Blizzard not only suspended Blitzchung for a year, but it also fired the two casters that were interviewing him.
Hearthstone commentator Brian Kibler said today he is stepping down from casting Grandmasters because of the severity of Blitzchung’s punishment, which Kibler felt was an example by Blizzard and one to “appease those upset by the outburst itself.”
