Blizzard cancels New York Overwatch Switch launch event

Nintendo New York tweeted the cancellation of Blizzard’s Overwatch Switch launch event without warning or reason. However, speculation points at the company’s recent backlash regarding Hearthstone pro, Ng "blitzchung" Wai Chung to be the cause.

The event was scheduled to take place tomorrow at Nintendo’s New York store from 4:30 pm - 7:00 pm. The first hour would have been open to the public while the rest of the event would be by reservation only. The first 150 fans to register would have also gotten the opportunity to meet the Overwatch voice actors.

Although not confirmed, the general assumption is that the cancellation is due to the mass criticism the developer has been receiving of recent. The public was enraged by Blizzard's decision to punish blitzchung for supporting the Hong Kong protests during an official Hearthstone Grandmasters stream. Blizzard initially gave him a one year ban, stripped him of his Grandmaster title and seized his prize money. After considerable backlash, Blizzard decided to reduce his suspension to six months and remove all other penalties.

Unfortunately for Blizzard, this has done little to calm the community down. Fans have uninstalled Battle.Net and even deleted entire accounts in protest, but the biggest is yet to come. Fight for the Future is a nonprofit dedicated to expanding the internet's power for good and they’ve set their eyes on Blizzard. Launching the Gamers for Freedom campaign, the group is putting together a protest at Blizzard’s annual convention, Blizzcon. This year’s edition will take place from November 1-3 at the Anaheim Convention Center and will likely be one to remember.

Nintendo apologised for the inconvenience caused by the cancellation but also stated that Blizzard made the decision. Fans have chosen to see this as yet another slight by the developer.