Blizzard and NetEase's agency contract will expire in January 2023, and a statement issued by Blizzard Entertainment on November 16, 2022 announced that the two companies had not renewed the contract. What to do if Blizzard and NetEase will no longer be agents after 2023: According to Blizzard Entertainment’s official statement, most games, including World of Warcraft and Hearthstone, will suspend services, but player account data will be retained.
1. When will Blizzard and NetEase’s 2023 agency cooperation expire?
On January 23, 2023, the next day (2023.1.24) all NetEase agent Blizzard games will be shut down and download channels will be closed.
Between now (2022.11.17) and 2023.1.23, the NetEase national server of Blizzard games will operate normally and the version will be updated normally; however, the registration and recharge entrance will be closed starting from 11.23
2. After Blizzard and NetEase terminate cooperation and no longer act as agents in 2023, which games will be affected?
"World of Warcraft", "Hearthstone", "Warcraft III: Reforged", "Overwatch", the "StarCraft" series, "Diablo III" and "Heroes of the Storm" are affected, and these games will not be online at that time
That is, except for Diablo Immortal, all other Blizzard game national servers will have their services suspended and will not be playable for a period of time.
3. Will the characters, equipment, cards, skins and other virtual items in the game account, as well as the purchased games, disappear?
No, the data will be sealed and player data will be properly transferred even if the agent is changed.
Player account data and purchased games will not be lost. Even if the agency changes, the data will be migrated, just like when World of Warcraft changed agents.
1. Blizzard Entertainment issued a statement on November 16 saying:
The licensing agreement previously signed by Blizzard and NetEase will expire on January 23, 2023. At that time, Blizzard will suspend most Blizzard game services in mainland China , including "World of Warcraft", "Hearthstone", "Warcraft III: Reforged", "Overwatch", "StarCraft" series, "Diablo" God III" and "Heroes of the Storm." The joint development and publishing of Diablo Immortal is part of a separate agreement between the two companies.
Blizzard said the two sides were unable to reach an agreement to renew the agreement that is consistent with Blizzard's operating principles and the company's commitment to players and employees. Blizzard will suspend new game sales in the next few days, and Chinese players will receive relevant details soon. The upcoming releases of World of Warcraft: Age of Dragons, Hearthstone: March of the Lich King, and Overwatch 2 Season 2 will launch later this year.
"We are extremely grateful for the enthusiasm shown by the Chinese community over the nearly 20 years we have been bringing our games to China through NetEase and other partners. Their enthusiasm and creativity inspire us, and we are looking at other options to allow us to games will return to players in the future ," said Mike Ybarra, President of Blizzard Entertainment.
2. NetEase published an open letter from players on November 17:
"Netease's Important Announcement Regarding the Expiration of Blizzard Game Product Operations"
To all dear Blizzard gamers:
Thank you for your continued support and love for Blizzard game products. We are honored to work with you all over the past 14 years, creating and sharing unforgettable game experiences. We would like to express our most heartfelt thanks to you all again!
Since the term of our agreement with our partner Blizzard Entertainment is about to expire, "World of Warcraft", "Hearthstone", "Overwatch", "Diablo III" and " StarCraft II, Warcraft III: Reforged, and Heroes of the Storm (hereinafter collectively referred to as "Blizzard game products") will terminate operations at 0:00 on January 24, 2023. The relevant matters regarding the termination of operations in mainland China are now notified as follows :
Starting from November 23, 2022, the recharge service and user registration portal for Blizzard game products on Battle.net and the client will be closed .
From November 23, 2022 to January 23, 2023, the servers of Blizzard game products will be open normally , with content updates for "World of Warcraft" "Age of Dragons", "Hearthstone" "March of the Lich King" and The "Return of Overwatch" Season 2 content update will be launched as usual, and users can continue to log in and experience the game content. At the same time, the Battle.net points and virtual currency retained by users in their accounts can still be consumed in the Battle.net Mall.
Starting from 0:00 on January 24, 2023, the operation of Blizzard game products will be officially stopped, Battle.net login and all game servers will be closed, and client downloads will be closed .
After the game server is closed, all account data and character information in each game (including but not limited to characters, remaining game time, game props, materials, recharge information, etc.) game data will be sealed . We will properly handle game data in accordance with the requirements of laws and regulations to protect the legitimate rights and interests of users.