Earlier this month, it was revealed that the Nintendo Store in New York would be hosting a special launch party for Overwatch, which blasts its way onto Nintendo Switch today. As it happens, Overwatch developer Blizzard Entertainment has cancelled the event with hardly any notice, and appears to have left Nintendo to apologise on its behalf.
The event was planned to take place tomorrow, Wednesday 16th October, but the Nintendo NY Store shared a message to social media just as Monday was wrapping up New York time. The message reads:
Please be aware that the previously announced Overwatch launch event scheduled for Wednesday, 10/16 at NintendoNYC has been cancelled by Blizzard. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
The event was free to attend but had very limited availability; those fans who were lucky enough to secure a free ticket have therefore been given less than 48 hours' notice that the event has been cancelled.
Interestingly, the official channels for both Overwatch and Blizzard haven't announced the cancellation, and Blizzard doesn't appear to have provided any reasoning for it either. Of course, it could be assumed that the cancellation is in relation to the recent PR disaster faced by the company after it opted to ban a pro Hearthstone player who voiced support for the Hong Kong protests.
Incidentally, if you're wondering why Overwatch still isn't playable on your Switch despite it being out today, worry not. At the time of writing, we have just a handful of hours to wait before the servers go live. Here are the times you need for your area:
[source twitter.com, via vg247.com]
Comments 98
Keep on destroying that goodwill
Ah yes, because you clearly haven't ticked off people enough with the Blitzchung debacle.
Also, leaving NINTENDO be the one to explain YOUR decision? That's just sad, Blizz...
What a bunch of cowards
Sucks for those planning on attending, for sure.
As an aside, I'd like StarCraft64 on the go...
Well that sucks for attendees. Nice move Blizzard especially on getting Nintendo to apologize for you.
@XBontendo BlizzCon 2019 "Announcements":
Blizzard: how can you NOT like us?
(PS this is satire, I sincerely hope none of this happens)
Man, feels like Blizzard takes any possible bad PR road.
Someone pointed out that it may make them look like those Chinese influences are more prevalent due to the Mei HK meme going about too.
Blizzcon is gunna be rough to watch.
Blizzcon is gonna be like a trainwreck that you can't look away from.
Very unprofessional and inconsiderate.
Clearly Blizzard want to avoid any potential PR hiccups, ie, anything whatsoever related to their disgusting grovelling to Winnie the Pooh.
Support Hong Kong. Democracy is not for sale. Don’t buy Overwatch on Switch.
@MarioFan02 I genuinely believed it until the Chinese Renminbi line. They'd never pass up a chance to take your money.
Don't forget that the "physical" is just a box with a code, well Blizzard, bye bye
@DonSerrot It’ll get cancelled.
That hole Blizzard is in keeps getting deeper. Any deeper and that hole will reach China. Oh wait
@MarioFan02 All of this is legit. XD
I for one have never been more excited for Blizzcon
Unsurprised. No way Blizzcon is happening this year, either.
Wow, what a shock. Not.
@Ralizah
Tickets are already sold out for Blizzcon for months.
Blizzard must not be allowed to forget their mistakes until they change as a company.
I don’t want Overwatch on the Switch to flop (because it could damage Nintendo), but I do want to see fans voice their opinions at Blizzcon and on all of Blizzard’s social media channels until they understand the damage they are causing to this community.
They need to respect the fans. Whether that be their longtime Diablo fans who are getting screwed with a mobile version. Their longtime WoW fans who are stuck behind a grind paywall. And of course everyone in Hong Kong, the casters, Blitzchung and freedom of speech.
Blizzard has completely showed a lack of respect for their loyal fans and continue to act in an authoritarian way about it.
We have to stay vocal towards them until they get the message.
@DJKeens So Blizz cancelled the event, nothing on their social media, leaving Nintendo to say "Remember that event? It's not happening" for them, i don't see any factual inaccuracies, acting like it's bad form to cancel an event on such short notice and suggesting a possible link to the Blitzchung PR-disaster is hardly a huge leap either.
That being said, Blizzcon is going to be interesting, that's something they can't just cancel, well, not without another PR disaster, anyway.
@Xaessya Well, then I for one hope those with tickets will carry out the mother of all protests during a live event for all the word to see.
Twenty years ago, I never would have thought Blizzard would do as many atrocious things as it has like this and with Blitzchung. When they merged with Activision I saw this kind of behavior as inevitable. Hardly the pro-gamer company that it was, especially when key staff left already.
Probably should have seen this after World of Warcraft became their main title. Loved them when it was the first two WC games and Diablo 2 with the original StarCraft. Something felt different and it was already noticeable in WC3.
@DJKeens
1. Please do not defend Blizzard’s bad PR. They should have announced it on social media and in other ways if they really cared about the fans.
2. NintendoLife are allowed to voice an opinion. They have not vowed to be neutral and each author has their own viewpoint.
3. All American media outlets are biased. (This isn’t really a point just wanted to say you could have replaced Fox News with CNN or MSNBC and it would have still meant the same thing).
If this was Pokemon then this coment section will be filled with defensive comments.
Blizzard shot themselves in the foot over the Heartstone thing and decided to shoot the other foot with Overwatch. Good luck with the sales Blizzard.
Damn I love the comments here. So much hate
Hmm, Blizzard doesn't seem to care about a (possibly) big Switch Overwatch audience, it seems. Well, the jokes on them!
@DJKeens I'm curious, which part of the article did you find "emotionally charged and biased"?
@PBandSmelly Every company is like that even Nintendo because they also support China by making their products there. It is cheap and made by slaves.
99% of the companies value money over human lives.
There was literally nothing emotional about this article, and the one opinion, that "it could be assumed" to relate to the recent PR incident, is not even taking a stance for or against the company, but just listing a probable reason for cancelling this event. So there's no bias there, either.
Where's your tegridy Blizzard?
@Bunkerneath Yea, but, it's also an online only game.
I get people being whiny about digital codes for single player offline stuff but online only? The cart would be as worthless as the download code anyway once servers are down or people stop playing.
@DJKeens But Nintendo were left to apologise since they announced the cancellation not Blizzard themselves? That’s literally a fact?
🔥🌪
So, amongst this firestorm of Hong Kong comments...I’m stoked to start this tonight with the Halloween Event. 🧛🏻♂️
For anyone else. Message me, we can exchange friend codes.
@DJKeens You're on a Nintendo news site. All other things equal, that Nintendo is having to announce the cancellation and not Blizzard is of course going to be frowned upon for the sheer logistics of it.
@DJKeens I'd say all of those elements are pretty factual in this case. It's also in line with everything else we post on Nintendo Life, maybe this site isn't for you if you don't like the style - which is fair enough.
All this because they wanna continue bending over backwards for China.
They may as well just exclusively release stuff in China instead for all the good they're doing to the rest of the world.
Is anyone going to be buying this considering the debacle that is going on currently? This I am sure is going to have a massive effect on how well this does on Switch
@CANCEROUS I was going to, but not anymore- Screw Blizzard.
#standwithhongkong
@MarioFan02 You sure it's satire?
Blizzard literally running away from its fans now. Pathetic.
@DJKeens certainly - happy to agree to disagree on this one!
I disagree.
I think it’s unfortunate, but the amount of people that care enough to not buy a new AAA Shooter on Switch to take their bold stance will not outweigh the people like me. I think it’s all messed up, but I’m stoked to play Overwatch tonight and am still going to get it today on my lunch break. I can’t control these type of real world things and me not going to buy it today to support that, changes nothing at all.@CANCEROUS
I know a lot of people may disagree and that’s fine. My point is in general the vast majority of people that want Overwatch on Switch will be like “yikes, that’s messed up but definitely still buying it tonight to play. That doesn’t concern me.” Period.
@DJKeens you are the problem
@CTmatic On the contrary, people like you and me are the people who can control these real-world things. We’re the people who give Blizzard et al. the only thing they care about: money. Not only that, we can spread messages to boycott them, inform our less informed friends, and work towards making it socially unacceptable to purchase Blizzard products. That’s the way one person making a decision becomes ten people becomes something that Blizzard has to start caring about.
I’m not going to tell you or anyone else to push out of your comfort zone to make a stand - I’m hardly one to moralise, Nintendo works with Tencent and I buy Nintendo goods. I’m just saying that we’re exactly the sort of people who can make a difference. If we choose not to then that’s on us.
Shame and i had planed on finally getting their Diablo game but not so sure now
guess i will turn around as soon as my path train stops in journal square no reason to continue into the city!!!!
@Sakisa Just like that upcoming Sonic film no one wanted: embrace the pain, baby!
@Ralizah Eh, Crapti-vision (owners of Blizz) probably doesn't want a massive class-action lawsuit on its hands, so BC 2019 ain't going anywhere.
The Q&A, however, probably isn't happening... and, at this rate, neither will BC 2020.
@Kienda Oh noes, what are we to do if OW flops? If only we had surefire hits like Fire Emblem, Zelda, Mario Maker, MUA3, Pokémon, PlatinumGames, Switcher, and Smash Bros to tide us over till next FY... wait a minute...
What do people expect.. Dumbs will try to turn the event into a political circus. Good for you Blizzard, good for you.
@MarioFan02 I kind of hope activision does cut ties. As it stands, they're associated with Blizzard's mess regardless of whether they like it
@XBontendo Who'd you see being a good fit for Blizz? I think CDPR could do a good job with Blizzard's IP - plus, we might actually real physical games for once.
@Tasuki ...are you blaming consumers? Blizzard turned it into a political circus all on their own. Punishing someone for speaking out for their home country, then releasing contradictory statements depending on the region. Not consumers fault they're doing that.
@MarioFan02
Don't give them ideas will you ?
@MarioFan02 That could be, but I don't think they'd take on the bad press at the moment. Realistically, and I know it was a joke, but I think Tencent may actually be the right partner. Matches ideals as well as gameplay direction. Probably end up with a better diablo then what Bliz has lined up on their own
That is a bummer for the people looking forward to this. I kind of wonder what would happen if they continued on with the event.
Best case scenario fans will play the game, meet their favorite voice actors, interact and have a good time. Worst case scenario people come to protest and shame gamers and staffs for even supporting Blizzard and possibly escalate things to the dangerous level.
I would hope for the former but seeing as people are frowned on for even pre-purchasing the switch version, I don’t see it turning out well either way.
I was going to buy Overwatch today. Now I won’t be until Blizzard does the right thing.
The Halloween event was pushed back for the switch launch, just for this, lol.
Blizzard is really going after EA's crown.
I supposed the launch event has been moved to Beijing??
Yea, I mean...I've loved Blizzard since the og Warcraft when I was like 8 years old, but this Hearthstone thing...
I'm glad they walked back the penalties a bit, but it is so sad seeing a company bow so hard to the Chinese government. We all know it's because of the oodles of cash Blizz's games get in China.
Kind of sickening when you see how companies really operate. And that includes our beloved Nintendo.
And this is what happens when an arrogant corporation thinks they can monetize The "Glorious" Chinese Communist Party.
@XBontendo Politics do not belong in the gaming community. People like Colin Kapernick need to learn this. If he wanted to speak out against his country then become a politician not a pro gamer. Blizzard was right to do what they did just like the NFL with Kapernick.
@Tasuki Nah. People use what platform they have to say what needs to be said. If you have a speaker and choose to say nothing while people suffer, you're helping to hide the issue.
"Politics" belong wherever they are needed. And if it takes a game to get people to think about the fight against oppression in Hong Kong, so be it.
OW is a game not really worth my time, or money. Between this and the already toxic OW community (that I had to endure during my time playing) I say good riddance to bad rubbish.
I hope this doesn't affect its sales on Switch. Even if many previous players neglect buying it, I hope many Switch owners will finally experience this 2016 success that I had my eyes on ever since. I mean, it finally has come to a Nintendo console and is playable anywhere! That is enough for me to buy it immediately
Blizzard needs to ax the incompetent people at the top of the company, but that’s not going to happen unless the shareholders become extremely pissed. The shareholders are not going to become extremely pissed because the people at the top are doing what is in the best interest of the shareholders and making decisions to maximize the profits of the company. They will lose some profits from western markets like the United States but they’re going to preserve current and future profits in China.
@Tasuki so it was wrong for athletes to use their elevated status within societies like the USA’s to oppose the Nazis?
Not buying Overwatch for Switch until Blizzard makes some changes, and if they never do that's totally fine. 30fps and an empty box weren't all that enticing anyway.
@Tasuki Politics belong everywhere, it's the way to decide how to live our life, it influences everything, from what you eat for breakfast to the death of peoples. And once is in you can't take it out anymore, because just saying "stop politics here" is a political stance too.
@Tasuki The fact that right wingers and left wingers (both actual politicians and consumers) and centrists are in outrage agreement over this...it becomes something more than political circus. The implications of big corporations kneeling to the Chinese government is a big issue FOR EVERYONE going into the future.
Oh boy, Blizzcon is going to be a show for the ages.
Maybe Overwatch on the Switch is substandard, and blizzard are bailing as they don't want to face the heat.
At least nintendo objectively says "No politics". Blizzard picks and chooses which things it as a company agrees with, which in many cases is 100% fine imo, but there's gotta be a transparency there. Not telling everyone in English that the kinds of politics don't matter while telling everyone in Mandarin that they side with China.
@HappyMaskedGuy I want to go further and say: Don't buy any blizzard games on any platform. This stupid attitude of them needs to stop! #BoycottBlizzard.
EA has to hand over the crown of 'Worst video game company' to Blizzard now. It's official.
This is hands down the worst PR disaster I have ever seen in this gaming industry imo. Worse than the Atari's Video game crash in 1983, worse than EA's Star Wars Battlefront 2 Lootbox debacle, and worse than anything Bethesda did with Fallout 76.
They actively choose tyranny over free speech and human rights, and they seem to be so unapologetic about it all too.
Either Blizzcon 2019 will be a total disater OR, it'll be cancelled. I wouldn't be surprised if the latter happened honestly.
@duhsoares21 I bought Overwatch on my Switch and I'm loving it. I really don't get the cancel culture. Blizzard simply does as Tencent instructs them. If you want to boycott Blizzard you also need to boycott:
1. Epic
2. Riot Games
3. Activision
4. Nintendo
5. and so many other gaming companies that are connected to Tencent in China.
I didn't know this was a thing. Weird. I enjoy the game though, so I'm still getting it.
@sanderev I didn't say Overwatch is a bad game, It was in my wishlist too. But gaming companies shouldn't be dictating politics to its players, that's why I am not buying it. what cancel culture? Cancel culture is what some SJW do with some people without any substantial proof, spreading irresponsible lies about someone based on nothing. What I am saying here is based on facts. There is nothing wrong in Blizzard business decisions connected with tencent, but when companies start to impose their political views to its players, censoring and punishing them for simply expose their desire for a better place to live it becomes a issue.
If the companies you listed go in the same route I will gladly boycott them as well. Anyway, I'm not a big fan of the companies you listed anyway, besides nintendo, although I'm currently on Xbox Only.
Blizzard/activision is becoming more like EA sold their souls to foreign country.
@duhsoares21 Actually the companies are following the law in place of the countries they operate in. You shouldn't mix politics and games. When you do, stuff like this happens. Boycotting (same as canceling fyi) a company doesn't work against that.
It won't help Hong Kong, it doesn't help the player who got banned, it only hurts a company that had to follow the law. If they didn't they would've been banned from China. Do you know how many WoW players there are in China?
I'm not saying Blizzard didn't make a big mistake by communicating as poorly as they did.
@sanderev Blizzard could simply remain neutral. No need to ban the player, or make political statements on behalf of china. I know how much money blizzard make in china with WoW and their other franchises, but this don't make their decisions right, just profitable.
Bleh. I can't bring myself to buy anymore Blizzard products until they clean up their act. Censoring yourself in China for business? Up to you. Wanting people to censor themselves outside of China? Nah.
@sanderev
As far as I know, Epic and Nintendo have not undermined freedom of speech and expression for the sake of profits from a totalitarian foreign country.
So no, the situation is not the same at all.
Right? I’m not speaking for everyone but a lot of people are just commenting for the sake of it and I doubt they care much. Just gives em something to talk about.
Anyyyyway, we should swap friend codes and join up sometime. I’ll be on it tonight for sure.@Heavyarms55
Did China tell them to cancel?
@sanderev
Of the few good reasonings before following the trend of the internet.
...
I am not against Hong Kong, I am not against people asking for help or protesting to defend their rights and, not supporting companies with their bad decisions, but in this case, simply because it is Blizzard, which already It has many problems and that sadly they have the luck to have "an event" in a "video game event", because everything went really wrong; but here, the point is that people overreacted the matter in a "bad" way and I say it by the following:
Blizzard aside, which "supposedly" seeks more business in China; if it had been another company that had done this matter of punishing the player, say Nintendo or Sony, I can bet you, and I can seriously bet that half of the comments against Blizzard would have been "Hypocritically" (sorry, but it's the truth) supporting the decision of Nintendo or Sony because, here is my point:
"""As it is a sporting event, of video games, where several people from all over the planet gather for a healthy and friendly competition, leaving aside any problem they have in their respective communities (because Hong Kong is NOT the only place in the planet with serious problems) so that they can enjoy it without problems, that is why there are laws that, and even if they are not written, the point is that every event is left aside political and religious ideas for the simple fact of avoiding conflicts between the attendees , competitors and the area where the event takes place and thus really have a healthy and friendly competition; therefore, before an act like this of the Hong Kong player, even though, yes, it was for supporting an event where many people are looking for peace and freedom, could momentarily produce a conflict that instead of improving the matter would make it worse """
Now you understand the point, right?
But, as it is against Blizzard, well, all the points are going to waste and we have a fool's hatred, but oh well, "it's already my point for this and I don't think about it anymore".
So while I try to get a copy of the Overwatch game, because it is the only game that has interested me in this shooting MMO.
Oh, and yes, go ahead, I know that I will receive many thumbs down, because I know that many want to continue supporting this issue, but remember, I do not support Blizzard in fact, I have never supported it, just for this game, just I make see the point that many do not want to see.
@CTmatic Oh that's right, it is today, isn't it? I thought it was Friday for some reason. My FC is in my tag in the forums. Feel free to add me anytime. I might not get the game until the end of the week. Depends if they have any Nintendo cards at the grocery store after work today.
This is why I’m not buying blizzard also EA games.
Poor form from Blizzard. Hopefully they do have a legitimate reason beyond the recent events. Feel for those people who had transport booked to get there.
Good lord, Blizzard is imploding like a dying star. What a PR nightmare...
@sanderev Tencent only sells/distributes the Switch in China. Tencent doesn't have any shares in Nintendo... and, hopefully, it stays that way.
Overwatch was one of those "maybe" games for me. I missed the initial launch on other consoles and this felt like a good time to jump in, but there are so many games competing for my time that I just wasn't sure... Blizzard makes the decision easy as I will be looking at DQ11 and Witcher instead.
@Tasuki politics influence just about every walk of life. You sound insanely ignorant. Just stop.
@MarioFan02 I already bailed when they announced they would be checking social media for reasons to ban you a while ago. And some people here defended that.
I wonder if anyone was banned from Battle.net for tweeting "Free HK".
Whether or not the statement from the president of Blizzard is telling the truth, the article does raise the question of dragging politics into everything. It seems like Blizzard is saying "When you compete and play our games, leave your politics at the door."
https://www.theverge.com/2019/10/11/20910692/blizzard-hearthstone-ban-reduce-hong-kong-protests-blitzchung-prize-money
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