[Epoch Times, June 21, 2022]Activision Blizzard’s new work “Diablo: Immortal”, originally expected to be launched in China on June 23, suddenly announced the delay , which caused the partner China NetEase’s share price to plummet by 10%.
Previously, the game company was interpreted as insinuating Xi Jinping because of a post on social media, “Why is Xiong not stepping down?”, which violated the CCP’s censorship mechanism, the account was blocked, and the launch of new games was delayed, and the launch time was undetermined.
NetEase issued a statement on the 19th saying that the mobile game “Diablo: Immortal”, which was co-developed with Activision Blizzard Inc., was originally scheduled to be released in China on the 23rd and will be postponed. The development team is making “multiple optimization adjustments” to the game.
Today (20th), affected by the above news, NetEase’s stock price in Hong Kong tumbled. It crashed by more than 10% during the session, the biggest drop in 9 months, and closed at HK$141 in late trading, with the decline converging to 6.68%. .
In this regard, the “Financial Times” interpreted that the delayed launch of “Darkness” was related to the release of the game company’s official Weibo account on May 22, “Why does Xiong still not step down?”.
The quote was interpreted as a mockery of Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping, who is often portrayed as Disney’s Winnie the Pooh, the report said. The cartoon bear has been blacklisted by Chinese censors for years.
Currently, Diablo is banned from new posts on Weibo, and discussions related to Xiong’s comments have been removed from the platform by censors.
In recent years, the CCP has cracked down extensively on technology companies, including the gaming industry. Authorities suspended approvals for new games last July. It was released in April this year, and it was frozen again in May, which led to the closure of a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises.
Charlie Chai, who heads NetEase for 86Research, said the industry was still under enormous pressure.
Diablo (English:Diablo) is a series of action role-playing hack-and-slash games and peripheral novels developed by Blizzard Entertainment.
Responsible editor: Sun Yun#