Originally Posted by FilthieRich (Official Post)
Please note PTR 2.7.2 testing will take place over the next two weeks. The current focus is on Soul Shards and Class Balance Changes
Don’t forget to take a look at the patch notes, and visit our full blog here
As a reminder, this forum is for PTR Feedback. Please direct any feedback or suggestions regarding Patch 2.7.2 to the PTR Bug Forum.
Originally Posted by Blizzard Entertainment (Official Post)
Our two-week PTR testing period for the 2.7.2 update begins November 4 and we're asking for your help to quell the tides of surging demons. Take a look at the preliminary patch notes below and start theorycrafting how you'll make the most of the Soul Shard system and item balance changes; Patch 2.7.2 PTR will be arriving soon.
Table of Contents
Please note that this is a preview for PTR content, which is subject to change.
PTR Focus & Details
We’ll be conducting the Patch 2.7.2 PTR starting Thursday, November 4. During this time there may be periodic maintenances, outages, hotfixes, or minor patches.
- There will be three PTR-unique buffs active to help you on your journey: increased Legendary drop rate, increased experience gains, and double Blood Shard drops. You can also buy new gear for testing from the special PTR vendor, Djank Mi'em, who will exchange Blood Shards for class-specific bags full of Legendary items that we'd love for you to test!
- Class and Balance Changes: To ensure that the most significant class changes receive an ample amount of attention, we'd love for you to focus testing and feedback on the set changes to the Witch Doctor, Barbarian, Necromancer, Wizard and Demon Hunter.
- New Season Theme Testing: We're looking to gather feedback on the seasonal theme content featuring Soul Shards.
So that we can efficiently review your posts, feedback should be provided in the PTR Feedback forum while bug reports should be provided in the PTR Bug Report forum.
PTR Testing Tips
As with our previous PTRs, this testing period is short, so it's best to hit the ground running. Whether you’re a PTR veteran or newcomer, we thought we’d pass along a few tips to get you started.
- Because of the limited duration of this PTR, we ask that participants pick a particular portion of this update to focus on testing.
- For example, if you’re primarily a Wizard player, consider what changes impact the Wizard specifically. What you like best, what you think may still need adjustment, and what you’d want to see in the future (even if that may be beyond the scope of this patch) are all good questions to ask yourself.
- Prior to the start of PTR, consider stocking up on items like Puzzle Rings and Bovine Bardiches. Having these available after you import your character can make any necessary PTR farming much faster!
- Try to break things! Just tell us when you do so we can make sure that the patch launch is as smooth as possible.
- When providing feedback, focus less on a solution and more on your experience. How did the changes make you feel? Was there something “off” that you noticed? Did something seem wrong or insufficient? Suggestions are always welcome but identifying the issues themselves is most important.
Patch Notes
Below you will find the patch notes for the upcoming update for Diablo III, Patch 2.7.2.
Table of Contents:
Seasons
New Season Theme: Season 25 introduces a new type of socketable item called Soul Shards. Nephalem can find 7 unique Soul Shards, based on the Lords of Hell, which give players demonic new powers. One of 3 Prime Evil Soul Shards can be equipped into Helms and one of 4 Lesser Evil Soul Shards can be equipped into Weapons. Each Soul Shard can be upgraded three times using a new seasonal-exclusive consumable, the Hellforge Ember.
Soul Shards and Hellforge Embers can drop from anywhere in Sanctuary, but Soul Shards have a higher chance to drop from Bosses. Soul Shards cannot be traded, but can be salvaged or utilized in Caldesann’s Despair. You may only equip one Prime Evil Soul Shard and one Lesser Evil Soul Shard at a time. Lastly, Soul Shards and Hellforge Embers only drop in Seasonal play, and will not transfer to your non-seasonal character when the season ends.
Developer's Note: With the upcoming 25th Anniversary of the Diablo Franchise, we wanted players to delve into the darker side of the Nephalem's past. In Season 25, players can embrace evil by infusing themselves with the essences of the Lords of Hell. Players will embark on their Season Journey to discover and upgrade demonic Soul Shards based on the seven Lords of Hell. By embodying a Prime and Lesser Evil, players will inflict new forms of pain and suffering on the demons of Sanctuary. We can't wait for players to get their hands on Soul Shards to start unlocking their true power.
Items
Item Changes
- Remorseless: While both Wrath of the Berserker and Call of the Ancients are active, Hammer of the Ancients deals 600-800% increased damage.
Developer's Note: We wanted to buff the Barbarian's Hammer of the Ancients playstyle without putting the power into a specific set.
- Shukrani's Triumph: Spirit Walk lasts until you attack 3 times or until an elite enemy is within 20 yards of you. Attacks while in the spirit realm deal 75-100% increased damage.
- Lakumba's Ornament: Reduce all damage taken by 60% if your Soul Harvest stack is at least (1-3), and an additional 2% for each stack of Soul Harvest.
- Spider Queen's Grasp: Corpse Spiders deals an additional 600-800% damage and releases a web on impact that Slows enemies by 80%.
- Brood of Araneae: Corpse Spiders deals an additional 75-100% damage, and each spider bite causes the target to take an additional 1% damage from Corpse Spiders for 5 seconds.
- Spirit of Arachyr (2-piece bonus): Corpse Spiders now spawns with health and attacks twice as fast.
- Spirit of Arachyr (4-piece bonus): Summon a permanent Spider Queen who leaves behind webs that lasts for 15 seconds and Slows enemies. You take 75% reduced damage while in the web. The Spider Queen is commanded to move to where you cast your Corpse Spiders.
Developer's Note: We've reworked Witch Doctor's Spirit of Arachyr set, as well as several legendary Witch Doctor items. With these changes, we hope to infuse Spirit of Arachyr with more flavor and gameplay, as well as give Witch Doctors a much needed power increase.
- Marauder's Encasement (4-piece bonus): Sentries deal 400% increased damage and cast Elemental Arrow, Chakram, Impale, Multishot, and Cluster Arrow when you do, as well as automatically cast your equipped Hatred spenders.
- Marauder's Encasement (6-piece bonus): Your primary skills, Elemental Arrow, Chakram, Impale, Multishot, Cluster Arrow, Companions, Vengeance, and Sentries deal 12000% increased damage for every active Sentry.
- The Shadow's Mantle (6-piece bonus): Impale deals an additional 75000% weapon damage to the first enemy hit, and 25000% to subsequent enemies.
Developer's Note: We adjusted the Demon Hunter Embodiment of the Marauder set to give it some of its legacy functionality and shifted power back to the Sentries. Additionally, we buffed The Shadow's Mantle set to make it more effective against multiple targets.
- Bones of Rathma (6-piece bonus): Each permanent active minion increases the damage of Army of the Dead by 1750%, up to 31,500%.
Developer's Note: The Necromancer's Bones Rathma set redesign has not been as strong as we had initially hoped, so we've increased its power.
- Firebird's Finery (2-piece bonus): Disintegrate Ignites enemies, causing them to take 1500% weapon damage per second until they die. When you die, a meteor falls from the sky and revives you. This effect has a 60-second cooldown.
- Firebird's Finery (6-piece bonus): You gain 2500% increased damage while Ignite is applied to a target. Hitting an Ignited enemy with a non-channeling fire spell deals Ignite damage multiplied by Combustion stacks.
Developer's Note: The Wizard's Firebird's Finery was reborn in patch 2.7.0 and has been one of the strongest builds in the game for all activities since. It's time to reduce the power of Firebird's Finery to bring it more in line with other classes and builds.
How to Participate
To participate in the public test, you must have a Diablo III game license attached to a Battle.net account in good standing (i.e. one that hasn't been suspended or banned). In addition, you will also need to download and install the Blizzard Battle.net desktop app if you have not already done so.
Step 1: Restart the Battle.net desktop app.
Step 2: Navigate to the Diablo III tab on the left-hand menu.
Step 3: On the Diablo III screen, there is a drop-down menu right above the "Play" button (note that this may say "Install" if you do not have Diablo III currently installed). Select "PTR: Diablo III" from this drop-down menu before proceeding.
Step 4: Click Install to begin the installation process.
Your PTR account will be created automatically if you do not already have one. The PTR is available in all supported languages, and accounts from all regions are eligible to participate. For additional assistance with installing and launching the PTR, click here.
PTR Character Copy
The option to copy your existing Diablo III characters from your live account to the PTR will be available and can be done directly through the PTR client. However, only one region per account can be copied at a time. So, if you choose to copy characters from your account in a different region, any previously copied PTR characters will be lost.
Step 1: Log into the live game and then log out.
Step 2: Log into PTR client and create a level 1 character. After you're done, return to the main character screen.
Step 3: Click on the "PTR Copy" button located in the upper right-hand corner. (The PTR Copy button will not appear in-game until you have created a new level 1 character.)
Step 4: Select your region.
Step 5: Click "Copy." This will copy all characters on your account from the selected region.
Step 6: You will be disconnected from the PTR client.
Step 7: Log back in. Your copied characters will be available for play.
Please note that you can only copy characters from one gameplay region at a time. If you choose to copy characters from a different region, any previously copied PTR characters will be lost. In addition, you can only copy characters over to your PTR account once every 24 hours. Attempting to copy characters before this cooldown is up will result in an error.
As this is a test server, please anticipate uneven game performance, and note that restarts and downtime may occur without warning. Thank you, and we look forward to your feedback!
A Letter From CEO Bobby Kotick Regarding Progress and Commitments Made at Activision Blizzard
The Diablo Immortal Closed Beta starts today! There are a few key notes for this test:
Originally Posted by Blizzard Entertainment (Official Post)
Adventurers, prepare. Diablo Immortal is entering its Beta testing phase, bringing us one step closer to worldwide launch. Select participants will experience a host of exciting new features and updates. Starting October 28 select participants in Canada and Australia will journey back to Sanctuary.
Additionally, we’ll be expanding Closed Beta access to users in South Korea, Japan, and China at a later time. We’re thrilled to introduce the Necromancer class, new challenging PvE encounters, epic battles to become the Immortal, controller support, and more!
Canada
5:00 p.m. (PDT) on October 28
Australia
5:00 p.m. (PDT) on October 28
Back in August, our team shared a Development Update on Diablo Immortal, highlighting key areas of focus we were going to revisit and level up following the Closed Alpha test. After diving into feedback from across channels like Reddit, social media, in-game surveys, and even collaborating with players in our community, we saw many opportunities to iterate on key gameplay systems as we progressed on the road to Beta. Today we kick off our Closed Beta and we can’t wait to share the exciting changes we have in place. Let’s dive in!
PLEASE NOTE: Diablo Immortal is still in-development. Game content in the Closed Beta is not final and subject to change.
NEW CLASS
Haunt your foes with the dead, so even the demons of the Burning Hells will feel dread.
Reanimate corpses to protect the living. Curse the damned with baneful skills. Inflict pestilence on the enemy. Alienated and shunned by society, those who underestimate your power are ignorant of their grave mistake. Only your commands echo in eternity.
Raise the dead. Raise the stakes. The Necromancer is here (one of six classes that will be available at worldwide launch).
CYCLE OF STRIFE UPDATE
The journey vying for the Eternal Crown is arduous and gripping. Requiring Shadow players to rally under a single banner to form a Dark House, fight other Shadows in competing Dark Houses in the Rite of Exile, and ultimately qualify as the top Dark House to challenge the Immortals. The Shadows who win the Rite of Exile will progress to a new endgame PvP confrontation. In a desperate struggle, the Immortal will harness ancient powers to defend their reign as a raid boss. The Challenge of the Immortal pits 30 players (Shadows) against 1 (Immortal), a decisive moment in the larger Cycle of Strife. The outcome will ripple across the realm.
PVP UPDATES
In addition to the exciting feature coming to the Cycle of Strife, other PvP systems that have undergone iteration will be making their debut.
Those with the ambition to become the best PvPers in the game will be able to stake their claim. The Battleground Ladder is coming, enabling players to measure their prowess against others in their realm.
There is no better time to jump in the fray, as we’ve also made changes to class balance, time to kill, and other impactful elements of Battleground PvP in Diablo Immortal.
SET ITEMS
On top of the above changes, a new end-game gear system has been implemented. In Closed Beta, Set Items will become available for secondary gear slots. Once a player wears a sufficient number of items from the same Set, that player will be bestowed an additional bonus.
To elaborate on this new system, each "Set" is for the same six slots, including Hands, Feet, Rings (2), Neck, and Waist. Each Set has two unique bonuses: one for wearing three pieces, and one for wearing six pieces. So, ultimately, you can wear a full Set for its two bonuses, or alternatively, mix three pieces of two different sets for two different three-piece bonuses.
Sets contain attributes around primary attacks, survival/health, fast movement, damage over time, summoning pets, or crowd-controlling enemies, allowing players to mix and match to their desired playstyle.
ENHANCED ITEM DROPS
Active players who progress in Paragon level or seek challenges by adventuring in higher-difficulty content will reap greater rewards. Both paths unlock the potential for the game to drop more powerful items. More powerful items will enable players to battle the minions of Hell on greater difficulties with even greater rewards.
THE HELLIQUARY UPDATE
Muster your courage and rally your friends. More mayhem is coming to the Helliquary. Helliquary bosses are now designed for raids of eight players. This is one of many changes we’re making to PvE, to make it more challenging and rewarding to players who complete these objectives as they cycle weekly.
PVE UPDATES
Beyond the Helliquary, we’re making changes to the various PvE activities. We want to provide players with choices about whether they prefer doing Bounties, Elder Rifts, or Dungeons to progress their character. You get to choose which activities you want to engage in and no matter what you choose, you’ll earn progress on the Battle Pass. The rewards from Bounties have been moved to the Battle Pass so players have the flexibility to earn the rewards in any way they want.
Dungeon crawling is a hallmark of the Diablo experience—the pursuit of loot and earning new gear is a critical ingredient to the formula of fun in our games. We’ve made Challenge Rifts a core part of your gear progression, especially higher Challenge Rifts. For players who want the highest level gear, seek out new upgrade materials in Challenge Rifts that can’t be acquired any other way.
CONTROLLER SUPPORT
We’ve heard players loud and clear and our long-term goal is to provide full controller support for Diablo Immortal. We’re not there yet, and there is more work to do. The Closed Beta will give players an early preview of this functionality. This early look at controller support will allow the use of a controller to navigate around the world and engage in combat with monsters. This early controller support comes with some major caveats:
- The Closed Beta does not include controller support for UI menus such as inventory, skills, Codex, Paragon, or vendors. You will still need to use the touchscreen to navigate UI screens.
- Not all controllers are supported. Device compatibility is part of our testing goals during Closed Beta.
- You may experience some technical difficulties such as controller disconnection.
SUPPORTED CONTROLLERS FOR THE CLOSED BETA
Xbox One Wireless Bluetooth Controller
Xbox Series X|S Bluetooth Controller
Xbox Elite Controller Series 2
Xbox Adaptive Controller
Sony Dualshock 4
Razer Kishi
PLEASE NOTE: More mobile compatible controllers will be supported at global release.
We look forward your feedback as we work to make the game more accessible to all.
MISCELLANEOUS CHANGES
Beyond these exciting PvP and PvE changes, more tuning and polish is happening behind the scenes affecting the Codex, Paragon, and XP systems. Many of these tweaks and changes are aimed at smoothing the leveling and progression experience. For example, the Codex Power Progression UI has been improved to provide players a clearer path of progression through tutorials and goals.
OPTIONAL IN-GAME PURCHASES
The Closed Beta will, for the first time, enable in-game purchasing on Android devices. This marks an important development milestone as we progress forward. We want all Diablo Immortal players to feel good about their investment in the game, and that any purchases they choose to make deliver the value they expect. Validating the appeal of the game in this way is an important component of ensuring a smooth launch, while also enabling us to support the game for years to come. Players will be able to purchase the Empowered Battle Pass, Eternal Orbs (which may be used to purchase consumable items such as Crests in-game), and promotional bundles. For more information on the team’s approach to monetization in Diablo Immortal please see our Free to Play Approach and Values.
PLEASE NOTE: All purchases made during Closed Beta will be credited to the account used as in-game balance at game launch. In-game progress will be wiped when Closed Beta has completed.
For example: If you spend $5.00 during the Closed Beta, when you download Diablo Immortal at official launch and connect your Battle.net account, you’ll receive a $5.00 in-game credit. You will then have the option to apply this in-game credit when you make real-money purchases.
LET THE BETA COMMENCE
The Closed Beta is here and we’d love to hear from our participants! We welcome you to share your impressions and feedback on the r/DiabloImmortal subreddit or across our other channels. As we progress through the Closed Beta, we’ll be listening to your feedback as we aim to craft an awesome Diablo experience.
If you want to learn more about Diablo Immortal, check out our website here, or for real-time updates, follow our official Twitter @DiabloImmortal!
Heroes of Sanctuary, thank you—and have fun raising some Hell this Halloween season!
FAQ
Q. Why is the Closed Beta only available on Android devices?
A: For the Closed Beta we have chosen to only test on Android in order to access and study the optional in-game purchase experience.
Q. How do I take part in the Closed Beta?
A: Currently, the Closed Beta is primarily limited to Android users in Canada, Australia, South Korea, Japan, and China. Please reference the dates and times above for when those tests begin.
Q. How many players will take part in the Closed Beta?
A: We anticipate tens of thousands will be able to take part in the Closed Beta. Mobile game development can often benefit from multiple rounds of public testing. By holding this Closed Beta in limited regions, we’ll be able to take in valuable server stability and client performance data, as well as critical gameplay feedback, to ensure that Diablo Immortal feels like a wonderful experience before going wider in the future.
Q. How long will the Closed Beta last?
A: We are aiming to keep the Closed Beta running under three months. We’ll be testing more late-game systems and controller support this time around, so we’re keeping it up longer to make sure players have enough time to play through all of them.
Q. What devices does Diablo Immortal support?
A: We are aiming to bring epic Diablo gameplay to as many devices and players as possible. The Diablo Immortal Closed Beta will be playable on Android devices and have the following minimum requirements:
Android Minimum Requirements
CPU - Snapdragon 670 / Exynos 8895 and higher
GPU - Adreno 615 / Mali-G71 MP20 and higher
RAM - 2GB of RAM and higher
Version - Android OS 5.0 (Lollipop) and higher
Q. When will Diablo Immortal be released?
A: We are planning to release Diablo Immortal in the first half of 2022.
Originally Posted by Bobby Kotick (Official Post)
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 28, 2021-- Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) CEO Bobby Kotick today sent the following letter to all employees.
October 28, 2021
A few weeks ago, I reiterated our commitment to become the most welcoming, inclusive company in our industry. Today, I want to update you on some initial progress and important, additional steps we are taking to advance our commitment with greater impact, transparency, and urgency.
First, I want to offer my sincere gratitude for your continued focus and dedication to our players – and to each other. You’ve shown incredible resilience throughout the pandemic, exceptional care for colleagues and communities, and the relentless commitment to excellence, creative independence, and purpose that always sets our company – and our franchises – apart. During a tremendously challenging time for so many people, you’ve continued to bring joy and connection to our players and communities around the world.
My goal – and the goal of our Board, our entire senior corporate team, our business unit leaders, and their teams – is to make sure you have the resources, culture, and commitment from leadership you need to succeed in our collective aspiration to be the model workplace in our industry.
Over the last decade, as we’ve brought in new companies, grown our workforce, and expanded our business, we believed we had the systems, policies, and people in place to ensure that our company always lived up to its reputation as a great place to work. Clearly, in some vitally important aspects, we didn’t.
The guardrails weren’t in place everywhere to ensure that our values were being upheld. In some cases, people didn’t consistently feel comfortable reporting concerns, or their concerns weren’t always addressed promptly or properly. People were deeply let down and, for that, I am truly sorry.
Being welcoming and inclusive, in the context of our workplace, is crystal clear. We will still passionately debate ideas, employ healthy skepticism when appropriate, and demand excellence and rigor in all of our pursuits – but we will always treat each other with dignity and respect. And regardless of differences, voices will be heard, perspectives welcomed, and contributions valued.
We are a business fueled by passion and performance. These are cornerstones of our creative excellence but we must constantly recognize, embrace, and celebrate that the very best ideas, the most rigorous execution of those ideas, and ultimately our responsibility to our players and each other are best served by a culture that recognizes and respects that true excellence comes from diverse views, voices, and talents.
We’ve made progress over the last few years fostering that diversity and creating a better work environment – a commitment that has improved in scope and speed in recent months. We’ve tripled our investment in anti-harassment and anti-discrimination training; we’ve made meaningful organizational changes; and we’ve substantially increased resources for reporting and carefully investigating improper behavior.
The EEOC’s investigative process, public discussion on discrimination and harassment, and your reports and suggestions helped shine a light on practices we need to improve, policies that need to be strengthened, and resources we are now adding. The EEOC’s review was a catalyst to sharpen our focus on the ways we can become a company others emulate as a model for workplace excellence and one with an unwavering commitment to its values.
We have a lot more to do if we are to be the company that others emulate.
I want to share five new changes we are implementing, but recognize being a model for workplace excellence will be a dynamic process requiring additional changes and an unrelenting commitment to improvement.
- We are launching a new zero-tolerance harassment policy company-wide – In the past, when we discovered and substantiated harassment, we terminated some employees and provided verbal or written warnings or different disciplinary actions to others. In retrospect, to achieve our goals for workplace excellence, this approach is no longer adequate. We need tougher rules and consistent monitoring across the entire company to make sure reports are being handled correctly and discipline is appropriate and swift.
As a result, we are implementing a zero-tolerance policy across Activision Blizzard that will be applied consistently. Our goal is to have the strictest harassment and non-retaliation policies of any employer, and we will continue to examine and tighten our standards to achieve this goal everywhere we do business.
Any Activision Blizzard employee found through our new investigative processes and resources to have retaliated against anyone for making a compliance complaint will be terminated immediately.
In many other instances of workplace misconduct, we will no longer rely on written warnings: termination will be the outcome, including in most cases of harassment based on any legally protected category.
Future employment contracts and equity awards will be clear: termination for these reasons will result in the immediate forfeiture of future compensation.
We also want to ensure that employees who file reports are encouraged, protected, and heard. For all reports of harassment and retaliation, we will investigate the allegation and whether the Activision Blizzard personnel who received the report of such behavior took the appropriate steps to protect the integrity of our compliance processes.
There may be some places around the world where local law may restrict some of these measures. In those cases, we will apply the highest permissible standards and the strongest possible discipline.- We will increase the percentage of women and non-binary people in our workforce by 50% and will invest $250 million to accelerate opportunities for diverse talent –Today, approximately 23% of our global employee population identifies as women or non-binary. Building on the success that King and other business units have achieved, we will seek to increase our percentage of women and non-binary professionals by approximately 50% – to more than one-third across the entire company – within the next five years and hopefully faster. Each franchise team, business unit, and functional area will be expected to have plans to help fulfill this ambition.
With respect to diversity, while we perform better than our peers with 30% of our U.S. workforce from diverse or under-represented communities, broadening this progress will continue to be a significant focus of mine as well as company, business unit, and franchise leadership.
To further this commitment, we’ll be investing an additional $250 million over the next 10 years in initiatives that foster expanded opportunities in gaming and technology for under-represented communities. This commitment includes inspiring diverse talent to pursue career opportunities in gaming through an ABK Academy that includes partnerships with colleges and technical schools serving under-represented communities, mentorships for participants, and a rotating apprenticeship program that leads to game development jobs, similar to the programs we began with the United Negro College Fund and Management Leadership for Tomorrow. We will also provide learning, development, and advanced degree opportunities for current employees to increase the number of women and those from under-represented communities in leadership positions across the company and in our industry.
In the coming months, Brian Bulatao, Julie Hodges, and I will share details about how we are operationalizing these goals and implementing and measuring this expanded investment.- Based on feedback from employees, we are waiving required arbitration of sexual harassment and discrimination claims – For any Activision Blizzard employee who chooses not to arbitrate an individual claim of sexual harassment, unlawful discrimination, or related retaliation arising in the future, the company will waive any obligation to do so.
- We will continue to increase visibility on pay equity – As described in the recent note from our President, Daniel Alegre, and our Chief Administrative Officer, Brian Bulatao, the company continues to focus on pay equity for employees. In fact, our U.S. analysis showed that women at the company on average earned slightly more than men for comparable work in 2020. To ensure transparency on our continuing commitment to pay equity, we will report these results annually.
- We will provide regular progress updates – We will be monitoring the progress of our business units, franchise teams, and functional leaders with respect to workplace initiatives and we will provide a status report quarterly. We also will be adding a dedicated focus on this vital work in our annual report to shareholders and in our annual ESG report with information on gender hiring, diversity hiring, and workplace progress.
Specifics on how these measures will be implemented and tracked will be forthcoming.
Lastly, I want to ensure that every available resource is being used in the service of becoming the industry leader in workplace excellence. Accordingly, I have asked our Board of Directors to reduce my total compensation until the Board has determined that we have achieved the transformational gender-related goals and other commitments described above. Specifically, I have asked the Board to reduce my pay to the lowest amount California law will allow for people earning a salary, which this year is $62,500. To be clear, this is a reduction in my overall compensation, not just my salary. I am asking not to receive any bonuses or be granted any equity during this time.
There’s a tendency when companies face challenging moments to lose sight of what makes them special, what makes them great. You are a truly special group of people who – through passion, conviction, drive, and determination – keep accomplishing extraordinary things. While the critical work ahead won’t be easy, I am confident our collective commitment to workplace excellence will be achieved.
I truly wish not a single employee had had an experience at work that resulted in hurt, humiliation, or worse – and to those who were affected, I sincerely apologize. You have my commitment that we will do everything possible to honor our values and create the workplace every member of this team deserves.
I am grateful for how much people care about this company, and I appreciate that many past and present employees have reached out with their thoughts, concerns, complaints, and suggestions. Your experiences, so courageously shared, serve as reason and reminder for why it is so important for us to do better. And we will.
With thanks and deepest gratitude,
Bobby
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. We may, in some cases, use terms such as “predicts,” “believes,” “potential,” “proposed,” “continue,” “estimates,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “plans,” “intends,” “may,” “could,” “might,” “will,” “should” or other words that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes to identify these forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to numerous important factors, risks and uncertainties that may cause actual events or results to differ materially from the Company’s current expectations. These and other risks are described in the Company’s periodic reports, including the annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K, filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission and available at www.sec.gov. Any forward-looking statements that the Company makes in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release.
Blizzard have announced the cancellation of the previously announced BlizzConline event scheduled for next year, and are instead taking the time to re-imagine what BlizzCon may look like in the future.
Originally Posted by Blizzard Entertainment (Official Post)
To the Blizzard community,
We’ve decided to take a step back and pause on planning the previously announced BlizzConline event scheduled for early next year. This was a tough decision for all of us to make, but it’s the right one.
Any BlizzCon event takes every single one of us to make happen, an entire-company effort, fueled by our desire to share what we create with the community we care about so much. At this time, we feel the energy it would take to put on a show like this is best directed towards supporting our teams and progressing development of our games and experiences.
Additionally, we would also like to take the time to reimagine what a BlizzCon event of the future could look like. The first BlizzCon was held 16 years ago, and so much has changed in the time since—most notably, the multiple ways in which players and communities can come together and feel like they are a part of something bigger. Whatever the event looks like in the future, we also need to ensure that it feels as safe, welcoming, and inclusive as possible. We’re committed to continual communication with our players, and we see BlizzCon playing a big role in that going forward. We’re excited about what we’ll do with the event when we revisit it in the future.
One more thing we wanted to make clear: even though we aren’t holding BlizzConline in February, we’ll still be making announcements and updates for our games. We’re proud of our teams and the progress they’ve made across our games. We have a lot of exciting upcoming news and releases to share with you.You’ll continue hearing about those through our franchise channels, with the talented people on the BlizzCon team playing a part in supporting these efforts.
We’ll miss seeing you, but don’t worry. We’ll be back together soon.
