Blizzard game fans in China bid farewell to beloved titles like World of Warcraft, as licensing pact with NetEase ends

From January 24, millions of mainland China-based gamers can no longer play Blizzard Entertainment’s online games such as StarCraft and Overwatch

As the Californian game publisher struggles to find a new Chinese partner after breaking up with NetEase, some local gamers say they are ready to move on

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In this file photo in 2009, a college student plays World of Warcraft in his dormitory room in southwest China’s Chongqing city. Photo: Chinatopix via AP

Ann Caoin Shanghai

Published: 9:00am, 23 Jan 2023

On the day that Petr Wang, a 24-year-old university student living in southeast China, found out that US game developer Blizzard Entertainment was ending its 14-year licensing partnership with NetEase to bring its popular titles on the mainland, he decided it was time to abandon StarCraft.

It was a hard decision for Wang, who became a fan of the military sci-fi franchise at age 11 and still has cherished memories of watching live streams of the game. “I was disappointed, angry and a bit numb, all at the same time, when I saw the news,” he said.

From January 24, Wang and millions of other gamers across mainland China will have no other choice but to bid farewell to their beloved Blizzard titles. The Irvine, California-based company will suspend all online services in the country starting at midnight, after it failed to secure a six-month extension with Chinese video gaming giant NetEase.

The break-up of Blizzard and NetEase, which has descended into a public spectacle of finger-pointing and accusations over the past months, stands in contrast to the amicable beginning of their relationship.

Visitors try out the World of Warcraft game at the Gamescom fair in Cologne, Germany in August 2018. Photo: AP Photo

William Ding Lei, founder and CEO of NetEase and a self-professed gamer himself, first approached Blizzard when he saw how well the American company’s flagship World of Warcraft series was being received by Chinese players.