BlizzCon 2019 With Hong Kong Affair Protests in the Background
BlizzCon 2019 is in full swing, but not everyone is celebrating together with Blizzard. A group of people demonstrating their support for the protests in Hong Kong and their dissatisfaction with the recent actions of the American publisher gathered at the entrance to the building where the event is taking place.
video games
Jacob Blazewicz
November 2, 2019
Twitter Will Soon Block Paid Political Ads; Facebook Won't
Twitter will soon block the possibility of publishing paid political ads. According to the company, they enable manipulation of public opinion. Facebook has recently taken a diametrically different stance on the issue.
Tech
Bart Swiatek
October 31, 2019
US Congress Representatives Send a Letter to Activision Blizzard CEO
Several US congressmen and senators have drawn up an official letter warning Blizzard of the consequences of its recent actions, favouring China's political line and punishing those who support democratic protests in Hong Kong.
video games
Michael Kulakowski
October 19, 2019
Blizzard Removes Mei Figure From its Store
Blizzard removed Mei figure from its store. Players suspect that the reason for getting rid of this Overwatch character is the fact that she has become one of the symbols of the ongoing protests in Hong Kong.
other
Jakub Mirowski
October 14, 2019
Tim Sweeney: „Epic Will not Punish Fortnite Players for Talking Politics”
Tim Sweeney from Epic Games referred to the controversy surrounding the suspension of Chung „blitzchung” Ng Wai by Blizzard for a political statement during a Hearthstone tournament. The CEO assured that he would not allow Fortnite players to be punished for their political statements.
video games
Jacob Blazewicz
October 9, 2019
Blizzard Punishes Gamer for Supporting Hong Kong Protests
Chung „blitzchung” Ng Wai supported the protests in Hong Kong in a recent in an interview after winning Hearthstone Grandmasters. Blizzard quickly removed Twitch streams and imposed severe penalties on the gamer - including a one-year suspension.
video games
Julia Dragovic
October 8, 2019
WoW Classic and Hong Kong Protests - Censorship has no Place in Azeroth
The Taiwanese World of Warcraft Classic server has become a place for the people of Hong Kong and Taiwan to communicate with each other, regardless of censorship. And they raise issues that are uncomfortable to some, because they are connected with politics and protests.
video games
Julia Dragovic
September 26, 2019
Nokia Documents Reveal How Russia Puts its Citizens Under Surveillance
SORM, a system used to monitor the Internet and telecommunication activity of Russians, has once again become a subject of controversy. The disclosed Nokia documents show how the system helps Russia to keep track of its citizens. One might start asking some uncomfortable questions about human rights violation.
Tech
Julia Dragovic
September 19, 2019
Trump Administration Wants to Monitor Phones of Mentally Ill People
Donald Trump's government is considering a new proposal to combat mass shootings, whereby the phones of people with mental health problems would be tracked to prevent acts of aggression.
Tech
Paul Wozniak
September 12, 2019
Google and Facebook Accused of Breaking Electoral Silence in Russia
Facebook and Google were accused of breaking the electoral silence during the local elections held in Russia last Sunday. The companies were supposed to display advertisements and political spots in violation of the law. The Russian media supervisory authority has not informed about possible consequences for the companies.
Tech
Bart Swiatek
September 9, 2019
USA vs China: Hardware Manufacturers Have Already Lost $10 Billion
The trade war between the USA and China has entered a new phase. On September 1, this year US President Donald Trump introduced new customs duties on Chinese goods, which could hit consumers' wallets.
Tech
Barth Faryna
September 2, 2019
Australian MP on DayZ Ban: „We're Making Ourselves a Laughing Stock.”
Tim Quilty, a member of the Australian Liberal Democratic Party, spoke on the announced ban on the sale of DayZ. In his view, the decision of ACB rating organisation makes Australia the laughing stock of the world.
video games
Jacob Blazewicz
August 18, 2019
Take-Two CEO Against Blaming Video Games; Science: He's Right, You Know
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick referred to the words of Republicans, including Donald Trump, who after the events in El Paso and Dayton blamed video game for the shooting. In his corner of the ring, science is giving him water and tactical advice.
video games
Julia Dragovic
August 6, 2019
Obsidian: The Outer Worlds Will be Political, But Not Moralistic
Leonard Boyarsky, the creative director of Obsidian Entertainment, said in a press interview about how developers approach worldviews in the futuristic action RPG The Outer Worlds.
video games
Bart Swiatek
July 5, 2019
Mike Pondsmith: Cyberpunk is Full of Politics
In 1988, Mike Pondsmith created the pen&paper base for Cyberpunk 2077, and in his latest interview for Video Games Chronicle told us why there is no escaping from politics, corporations, and difficult questions in the Cyberpunk universe.
video games
Julia Dragovic
July 2, 2019
US President Donald Trump Postpones Huawei Trade Ban
US President Donald Trump decided to delay the trade ban on Huawei. This means that American companies will be able to do business with the Chinese giant almost as they have done up to now.
Tech
Bart Swiatek
July 1, 2019
„Metal Gear is the Work of American intelligence,” says Russian minister
According to the Interfax press agency, Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation Andrey Kartapolov said before the State Duma that the Metal Gear series published by Konami is in fact a camouflaged project of the American secret service.
video games
June 29, 2019
Consoles 25% more expensive? Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft Against Trump's Sanctions
Major console manufacturers Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft issued a joint statement opposing Donald Trump's proposal for 25% penalty duties on, among others, consoles manufactured in China. If sanctions are adopted, Switch, Xbox and PlayStation prices in the U.S. will rise by at least 25%.
other
Julia Dragovic
June 27, 2019
US Government Shuts Down LoL in Iran and Syria
Sanctions imposed on Iran and Syria by the US government have resulted in gamers in in these Middle Eastern countries losing their ability to log into the popular MOBA League of Legends.
video games
Bart Swiatek
June 24, 2019
EA Defends Lootboxes: „It's a surprise mechanic.”
During a government commission meeting in the UK, a representative of Electronic Arts compared lootboxes to Kinder Surprises and claimed that gamers liked this element of video games.
video games
Jakub Mirowski
June 20, 2019