Think we are about to see another wave.

[znushu]

The servers are struggling with the influx as is. If there is a larger wave coming then... well I hope they have fire extinguishers near the servers

[NegativeS]

Yeah, I've been lurking on the World of Warcraft forums, and as of the time I am posting this, more than half of the posts on the front page of their General Discussion are either about the allegations, or about how they hate the devs, the direction of the game, the story, etc., and why it's making them leave.

This is probably strike three for a lot of people, after the Hong Kong controversy and what happened with WCIII Reforged. I won't be surprised if this is the start of the WoW death spiral, if it hasn't already begun.

It's really depressing to watch.

[SirCadogan]

The other half are saying "nope, these allegations are lies and we agree, women need to be……."

[TeraRamis]

The other half are saying "nope, these allegations are lies and we agree, women need to be……."

I don't believe they are lies, and I don't believe the claims are exaggerated... this isn't a normal lawsuit, it's the state doing a major 2+ year investigation and then taking a step that's just one small level short of (and may eventually lead to) criminal prosecution.

I feel about 99 percent utterly horrified by the woman committing suicide, and roughly 1 percent 'a) why did you share nude photos of yourself (and before someone loses their mind and calls me a misogynist - I don't think you should be sharing nude photos of yourself these days period; they're just going to get traded and leaked. It's inevitable), and b) I sure wish you could have held out, because you'd be a multi-multi millionaire right now if you had lived to sue the bejezus out of them.' Basically, I wish she hadn't made an irrevocable choice over a situation as fleeting as perceived personal shame .

Overall, my reaction is one of knowing revulsion - most of us knew Blizzard was a really jacked company; there have been little signs of it here and there. But the extent to which it was a corporate culture... is just kinda geesh.

[Penthea]

The other half are saying "nope, these allegations are lies and we agree, women need to be……."

Oh yes I'm sure the state of California spent a ludicrous amount of money to launch a two year investigation into one of the biggest gaming companies in the world, and are willing to spend even more in a legal battle against them just because some women are too sensitive and don't know how to take a joke. Totally not because there is a real problem with people abusing their power and money to the point of endangering lives...sure it's unheard of for that to happen, right?

Man, some people...I don't mean you of course, I mean those you speak of.

Anyone who thinks it's all lies are kidding themselves. No one gets investigated for two years by the state for no reason. You have to do something really big to earn that sort of attention. A massive wealthy company doesn't gets sued by the state purely because of baseless rumours. The state of California clearly have some proof if they're taking it this far.

And lets keep something very important in mind. This issue with severe mistreatment of female staff is not only two years old. Only the investigation is two years old. The issue would have to be far older than that to warrant that sort of attention. Never mind the fact that Alex Afrasiabi was internally known as Blizzard's Bill Cosby and he joined Blizzard in around 2004. He left Blizzard last year super quietly, unusual for someone so high up the chain, and it confused many people. Mystery solved I suppose.