They need to take action against the streamers who knowingly exploited. I’m not naming names, but it’s not Esfand. If you want to be credible, don’t use this red herring. But there are streamers who abused it.
They have people who have broadcast to many people wrongdoing. So they need to be transparent with the discipline that they mere put regarding these streamers. Otherwise it tells all the people that they are influencing that exploiting is good and nothing will happen to you. It’s a moral hazard and Blizz needs to get in front of it immediately. Lore’s post tries to tap down the furor over Esfand, but it doesn’t redirect it. Desire for justice doesn’t just disappear. They need to deal with the people that are public facing and exploiting so that people’s desire for justice is satisfied. Otherwise this is going to turn into a pretty cancerous mob.
Blizz, this isn’t hard. If they exploited, they get suspended and items and gold deleted. Don’t do this from the shadows. No one trusts you to do the right thing without you showing them. You have to be explicit that streamer status is not going to affect punishment.
In life the wealthier you are and more connected the less you generally have to abide by same rules and punishments than the average person.
If you thought for a minute ActiBlizz’s free advertisers of its product would come under the same penalties and rules as mere average gamer’s your expectations were way out of the norm.
It is a common trope that first offenders of things before any real action is done would get a pass. Look at the Reck bomb to kill Kazzak. The dude didn’t get any punishment, but a fix came shortly after. What happened again last night when the problem was exposed? Oh yeah, that fix.
And guess what. the reck bomb guy. He wasn’t famous on youtube or anything.
I think this is something a lot of people are having a hard time grasping these days.
Whether we like it or not, streamers are gaming’s version of real life celebrities and pro athletes. Those people get FAR more leeway than the average gamer like most us are. That’s just a fact.
In real life you basically accept the fact that Tom Cruise will get pulled over for going 90 in a 55 and be let go with a warning because he’s Tom Cruise… whereas any one of us would get a ticket or worse.
In gaming, popular streamers will get the same level of leeway because they’re celebrities in the gaming world that are good for marketing (whether you like it or not that’s just a fact).
Some streamers streamed the bans people were getting, showing action was being taken and that exploiting wasn’t ok. And this is from a streamer who has a face I want to punch.
In a system where trust and the perception of integrity matter, you have to be in front of this. It’s like saying that the fire department always puts out the fire, but not until the house is fully burned down. Timing matters on these things because a lot of damage can be done.
MMOs used to be genuine meritocracies in a world full of you willing peons that love being crushed under the heel of some ego mad personality. Streamer filth ruined that.
Difference was that it was earned. Justice and reciprocity are always violated when it’s unearned and that’s a very negative visceral feeling for those who care about such concepts.
they won’t ban the people that did it the most or streamed it because those people on twitch are Blizzards lackeys " they pretty much get paid to stream blizzard games and talk up their games" why you never see one get perm banned" unless they fall out of favor with a Dev or two LOL