Blizzard's Diablo IV Hardcore Celebration Event Excludes Players from Mainland China

Blizzard has launched a 'Hardcore Celebration' event for Diablo IV to commemorate the bravest wanderers who conquer the game's permadeath mode. The top 1,000 players to reach level 100 in Hardcore mode will have their names permanently etched onto a prestigious statue of Lilith. However, upon reading the fine print of the event requirements, players were greeted with a discriminatory exclusion clause.

The rules explicitly state that residents of Russia, Belarus, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, Crimea, Syria, and—notably—Mainland China are ineligible to participate. This move triggered an immediate firestorm in the NGA gaming community. Players expressed their frustration with terms like 'f***ing idiot' (a common community slur directed at companies) and 'lol' (used sarcastically). Many users criticized Blizzard’s blatant exclusion, with some questioning why anyone would still support a company that treats them with such disrespect. Others sarcastically pointed out the irony of Blizzard’s commitment to 'diversity and inclusion' in their games versus their exclusionary policies in reality.

The sentiment in the community is overwhelmingly negative. While some players used dark humor to cope with the situation, others viewed this as yet another display of Blizzard’s trademark corporate arrogance, feeling that such behavior has become expected from the company.