For many decades, Blizzard was a beloved company. Producing beloved series over many years and even hosting its own convention, it was an icon of video game design. Even now players eagerly await rumors of games like Overwatch 2.
However, Blizzard has suffered a bit of a downward spiral in popularity over the past couple years. For starters, the company was acquired by Activision, a company that has a poor reputation. This contrasted rather heavily with Blizzard’s philosophy, which brought games slowly, but ensured their quality. Since then, a series of confusing and poorly thought out moves have done little to endear Blizzard in the hearts of gamers. Now a decision more serious than a bad game has many up in arms against the company.
It was recently announced that Blizzard is shutting down its office in Versailles. This came after, according to employees of the office, Blizzard repeatedly denied plans to close it. While plans were originally in place to transfer employees to another office in London, these were scrapped due to COVID-19 complications and Brexit. As such, the future of these employees is in a dangerous limbo, about to enter a terrible job market in the midst of an ongoing pandemic. However, this move has been met with opposition, as three unions representing Blizzard employees have called for a strike until the decision is reversed.
The three unions call the decision “inconceivable” given the current work climate. Furthermore, they refute the idea that this is a necessary cutback made because of COVID-19 conditions. According to the unions, Blizzard has twice tried to cut jobs from the office and been shut down in court both times. Following this, the unions claim, the company degraded working conditions at the Versailles location. The more likely reason is claimed to be a desire to avoid European taxes by removing the office. This would fall in line with Activision/Blizzard’s massive layoffs in a “record year” last year.
Multiple parties have rallied behind the unions, pledging solidarity as the employees face an uncertain future. Among these are other French tech companies as well as players who are fans of Blizzard titles. Massive gatherings have been held in World of Warcraft in protest, and #KeepVersaillesOpen has begun trending on Twitter. The solidarity against Blizzard resembles the protest against Blitzchung’s ban for pro-Hong Kong comments last year, though it may take more than new game announcements to mollify players this time.
As of this article, the future of the employees at the Versailles office remains tenuous. Unionization and strikes are notoriously rare in the video game industry, and it remains to be seen how this one will play out. Some have called for boycotts against Blizzard titles, though it’s uncertain how many will hold to it, especially with Shadowlands on the horizon. Perhaps, if the closure goes through, the displaced could find a home at Dreamhaven, the studio begun by Blizzard vets, but hopefully it won’t come to that.
Source: Rock, Paper, Shotgun
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