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Blizzard has introduced that it is cancelling plans for a web-based BlizzCon occasion that was scheduled for February 2022.
The annual fan conference that was once the centerpiece of Blizzard’s advertising technique has taken a pounding due to each the COVID-19 pandemic, and the quite a few lawsuits accusing Activision Blizzard of fostering a tradition of sexual harassment and toxicity.
You may see the affect of each occasions in Blizzard’s announcement. First, the corporate describes BlizzCon as an “entire-company effort,” and it feels that proper now the vitality towards producing the present “is finest directed in the direction of supporting our groups and progressing improvement of our video games and experiences.”
Following that, Blizzard states that it is trying to “reimagine” what BlizzCon occasions appear like, and to make sure that a future occasion is as “secure, welcoming, and inclusive as attainable.”
BlizzCon occupies a big chunk of the State of California’s lawsuit in opposition to Blizzard, stating that at booze-filled occasions adjoining to the conference, staff like former World of Warcraft designer Alex Afrasiabi would allegedly sexually harass different Blizzard staffers.
And whereas Blizzard’s reckoning with a poisonous tradition of sexual harassment is a notable a part of this story, it is price noting how COVID-19 is just not solely altering the occasions enterprise, however Blizzard’s improvement timelines. The proliferation of on-line occasions, (notably for revealing new video games, films, and TV exhibits) has rewritten expectations for a way video games are revealed.
And as firms attempt to handle the world of vaccine mandates, COVID-19 variant spikes, and improvement delays, there stays loads of uncertainty for firms like Blizzard that use these occasions to hype their merchandise. It is smart that the occasion may want re-imagining at a number of ranges.
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