The controversy has been a treat for Activision Blizzard for several weeks. The latest is not about management, but rather a problematic reference in the most famous MMOs.
We’re no longer presenting World of Warcraft, a global online phenomenon that continues to represent a significant financial gain for Activision Blizzard seventeen years after its release. After a stormy summer after numerous allegations of harassment and sexism, the American publisher now seems to want to make up for a certain seriousness.
Our colleagues from Kotaku actually report that one non-playable character in the game, Gorge the Corpsegrinder (“Gorge le Broyeur de cadavres”, in French), an orc named in honor of the lead singer of the death metal band Cannibal Corpse, George “Corpsegrinder” . Fisher recently saw his name change after finding the singer’s old and awkward words 14 years ago.
Bad Blizzcon buzz
In a 2007 interview that later aired during Blizzcon 2011, Fisher announced his love for the game with these flowery words:
I have four accounts at level 70. I’m not kidding, WoW is the fucking life for me.
But when the time comes to talk about which faction the singer is playing, it spoils:
I don’t play with this damn gay alliance either. Fuck Allianz, go kill your cock sucking emo gang.
Charming. Even then, these words, dripping with homophobia, caused a sensation and forced Mike Morhaime, then CEO of Blizzard, to apologize publicly:
We really want to apologize when we hurt or offend someone. We want everyone to have fun and feel welcome at our events. We are proud to be part of this huge and diverse community, and I am proud that every aspect is represented in Blizzard itself.
Kotaku rightly points out that Fisher’s words were therefore out of place in 2011 and that this is by no means a time-specific outrage. However, given the delicate situation in which the publisher is currently stuck, you will have to wait ten years until the homage to George Fisher on the occasion of the deployment of patch 9.1.5 finally disappears from the game. Forget Gorge the corpse grinder, make way for Annihilator Grek’lor!
