Gamers are avoiding Activision Blizzard games today in solidarity with workers

By Otto Kratky Published July 28, 2021

Players across platforms aren’t logging in to Call of Duty: Warzone, Overwatch, World of Warcraft, or the rest of Activision Blizzard’s games in solidarity with the developers walking out of the company today.

The Activision Blizzard walkout was organized by developers at the company in response to the serious allegations made against the company in a recent lawsuit from the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. The lawsuit, filed following a two-year investigation by the department, alleges that Activision Blizzard cultivated a “frat house” culture in which sexual harassment and discrimination were commonplace. The lawsuit goes on to say that women were routinely denied promotions, which went to less-experienced men, and were paid less for the same work.

Recommended Videos

Across Twitter, players are using the hashtag ActiBlizzWalkout to show their support for Activision Blizzard employees. Many players are encouraging others not to cross the “picket line” formed by developers at the company by avoiding any games with Activision’s or Blizzard’s name. Besides the games mentioned before, players will be avoiding some major franchises, including Crash Bandicoot, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, Spyro, and Guitar Hero.

I stand in solidarity with the #ActiBlizzWalkout today and will not be playing or streaming any of their games. I am inspired by the bravery of those who came forward and have told their stories at very real risk to themselves and their careers, and I hope they find justice. pic.twitter.com/8Ml1fc1noP

— Brian Kibler (@bmkibler) July 28, 2021

Today’s walkout isn’t the first response developers at the massive gaming company have had to the lawsuit. Earlier this week, a senior system designer for World of Warcraft stated that “almost no work is being done on World of Warcraft right now while this obscenity plays out.”

Activision Blizzard has already issued multiple public and internal statements regarding the lawsuit, but they have been received as “tone deaf” by employees and even the company’s CEO, Bobby Kotick. Kotick yesterday issued his own statement, in which he called for a “swift action to be the compassionate, caring company you came to work for and to ensure a safe environment.”

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Otto Kratky is a freelance writer with many homes. You can find his work at Digital Trends, GameSpot, and Gamepur. If he's…

Gaming

Crash Bandicoot 4 dev partners with Xbox for next game — after leaving Xbox

Crash Bandicoot emerging from a tunnel, with a smirk on his face.

Toys for Bob, the now-independent game developer best known for its work on Call of Duty and Crash Bandicoot games, announced that it struck a deal with Xbox, its former parent company, to publish its next game.

The studio revealed the move on X (formerly Twitter) Friday, adding that while the game is still in the early stages of development, the team is "working hard on an experience we're so sooo inspired about."

Gaming

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is coming to Xbox Game Pass at launch

A soldier squats in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 key art.

After days of speculation, Xbox confirmed that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will come to Xbox Game Pass at launch. Xbox has not specified which platforms it will come to, though.

When Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was officially announced last week, fans immediately began speculating about its Game Pass status. It's the first Call of Duty title released since Microsoft successfully acquired Activision Blizzard, so a Game Pass launch seemed likely. While the announcement was initially leaked by a Game Pass notification, Xbox has now officially confirmed that the game is bound for the service.

Gaming

Will Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 be on Xbox Game Pass?

Key art for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War season 2.

Activision Blizzard, which is now owned by Microsoft, has just confirmed that the next Call of Duty game is titled Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. There's been one major point of contention ahead of this year's Call of Duty: Will it be on Xbox Game Pass at launch? A new report from The Wall Street Journal suggests that is the case.

Historically, Microsoft has added all its first-party games from Xbox Game Studios and Bethesda to Game Pass the day they launched. That applies to big AAA releases like Starfield, as well as more experimental titles like 2022's Pentiment and Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, which came out this week. Microsoft's public messaging thus far has teased that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will come to the Xbox Game Pass. That said, Microsoft has not officially confirmed it, so there have been conflicting reports on this actually being the case.