Blitzchung, the professional Hearthstone player who was suspended by Blizzard following him professing pro-Hong Kong sentiment during an official broadcast, has written a response. The response comes a day after Blizzard issued an official statement regarding the situation which reduced Blitzchung's suspension to six months and reinstated his tournament winnings. In his response, Blitzchung acknowledges his fault but questions the severity of his punishment.


Blitchung's statement, which he posted to Twitter, begins with him offering his gratitude to Blizzard for reconsidering their initial decision. He specifically acknowledges his fault in the incident, recognizing that "my act could take the conversation away from the purpose of the event." His "act" referring to his statement of support for Hong Kong's pro-democracy protests during the Hearthstone post-tournament interview. Blitzchung goes on to say that they will reserve their political opinions for their personal platforms from now on.



The statement then redirects to respond to Blizzard's recently issued statement on the matter. Regarding the reinstatement of his tournament winnings, which are over $10,000, Blitzchung says that he appreciates Blizzard's change of heart. He repeats Blizzard's words in that he played the tournament fairly and deserves to keep the prize. Regarding the suspension, Blitzchung again thanks Blizzard for lessening the punishment. However, he adds that "six months is still quite a lot to me." He then says that he hopes Blizzard will reconsider the six-month suspensions for the two casters who were interviewing Blitzchung.


The final thought in Blitzchung's statement regards the question of whether he intends to continue playing Hearthstone going forward. Blitzchung clarifies that he has made no decision on the subject. For the time being, he plans to relax and decide whether to continue playing competitive Hearthstone or not later. He then thanks the Hearthstone community for changing his life and wishes a blessing for both Blizzard and all Hearthstone players.





Following his statement, Blitzchung hosted a livestream in which he did a Q&A regarding the situation. During the Q&A he actively avoided answering politically charged questions, like whether or not he feels like Blizzard was influenced by the Chinese government in its decision. He does go on to clarify that he's safe, though, acknowledging the severity of the situation. But mostly it seems like Blitzchung is hoping to move on from the controversy.









Tags:
Blizzard,
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft