Due to NetEase’s intransigence, 7 multiplayer games, including Hearthstone, World of Warcraft, Overwatch 2, and Diablo III, will go offline in China on January 23. This does not apply to Diablo Immortal.

Blizzard asked the Chinese company to give another 6 months of support for the games, but they refused, trying to end the 14-year partnership as quickly as possible.

NetEase

The complaint against the Chinese partner came after information that NetEase had begun to disband the team responsible for supporting Blizzard in China.

As a gamer who spent ten thousand hours in the world of Azeroth, starcraft and overwatch, I feel so heartbroken as I will not longer have the access to my account and memories next year. One day, when what has happened behind the scene could be told, developers and gamers will have a whole new level understanding of how much damage a jerk can make. Feel terrible for players who lived in those worlds.

Simon Zhu, President, Global Investments and Partnerships of NetEase Games

Simon Zhu wouldn’t name specific names but hinted that one particular person he called a “jerk” was to blame for all of this. The network believes he was referring to Bobby Kotick, the head of Activision Blizzard.

The American company is already looking for a new partner, which is likely to take some time.

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