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Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Blizzard and NetEase announced a renewed publishing agreement on April 9, 2024 Pacific Time (April 10 in China), with Blizzard games planned to return to mainland China in stages beginning in summer 2024. The announcement named World of Warcraft and Hearthstone, alongside other games in the Warcraft, Overwatch, Diablo, and StarCraft universes. It did not give a complete title-by-title relaunch schedule, so it should not be read as confirmation that every game returned at once—or as a current availability list.
What did Blizzard, NetEase, and Microsoft announce?
Blizzard Entertainment, Microsoft Gaming, and NetEase announced the renewed Blizzard publishing agreement on April 9, 2024 Pacific Time, which was April 10 in China. Its purpose was to bring Blizzard games back to players in mainland China through NetEase publishing. NetEase described its previous collaboration with Blizzard as lasting more than 15 years; Blizzard’s 2022 notice said the licensing agreements had been in place since 2008.
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AVGPC Blizzard Gaming PC - Intel® CPU Core i9 11900KF, RTX 5060 Ti, 32GB DDR4, 1TB NVME M.2 SSD,... | $1,499.00 | Buy on Amazon |
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Spore - PC/Mac | $14.95 | Buy on Amazon |
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Adiboo - Pazirals Geheimnis + Game Pad | $53.52 | Buy on Amazon |
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Call of Duty: Black Ops II - PC | $69.99 | Buy on Amazon |
The announcement also described a separate Microsoft Gaming–NetEase collaboration to explore bringing new NetEase titles to Xbox consoles and other platforms. That exploratory effort is distinct from the Blizzard publishing agreement; it was not presented as a confirmed list of Xbox ports or as a condition of Blizzard games returning. NetEase’s April 10, 2024 announcement sets out both arrangements.
When were Blizzard games supposed to return to China?
The April 2024 announcement said Blizzard titles would return sequentially, beginning in summer 2024. That was a staged plan, not a single launch date for every game. An update from the World of Warcraft China operations team, also dated April 10, said technical preparation was still required, including rebuilding server facilities and restoring data.
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Those announcements establish the plan and preparations as of April 2024, but do not establish a complete present-day schedule or the current service status of each game. The joint announcement did not name a return date for every title. For current availability, players need a later official service notice for the specific game.
Which games were included in the NetEase agreement?
The joint announcement explicitly named World of Warcraft and Hearthstone, then described additional titles at franchise level: games in the Warcraft, Overwatch, Diablo, and StarCraft universes. It did not enumerate every individual title or promise that all historical games in those franchises would return on the same schedule.
Rank #2
- Epic journey from the origin and evolution of life through the development of civilization and technology and outer space exploration
- Play any way you choose in the five evolutionary phases of Spore: Cell, Creature, Tribe, Civilization, and Space
- Grow, evolve, interact with and battle other cultures, and conquer the planet
- Visit literally millions of planets full of other player's creations
- Single-player game provides unlimited worlds to explore and play
The scope is therefore broader than the two named games but less specific than a complete title-by-title relaunch list. The announcement alone does not establish a return date or present availability for any particular unnamed game.
Why had Blizzard games stopped operating in mainland China?
Blizzard said in November 2022 that most of its game services in mainland China would be suspended when its then-current NetEase licenses expired on January 23, 2023. The titles listed in that notice were World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Warcraft III: Reforged, Overwatch, the StarCraft series, Diablo III, and Heroes of the Storm. Blizzard specifically excluded Diablo Immortal from that termination because it was covered by a separate agreement. The 2024 announcement marked a renewed publishing arrangement after that earlier licensing period ended; it did not mean the old licenses had continued uninterrupted. See Blizzard’s November 16, 2022 shutdown notice.
What did Blizzard say about player account data?
In its April 10, 2024 update, the World of Warcraft China operations team said account data would be retained when servers reopened. The statement was a commitment made during relaunch preparations, not evidence by itself that a particular game is currently available or that its servers have reopened.
“When the servers open, we will ensure your account data is fully retained.”
Rank #4
Call of Duty: Black Ops II - PC
- An all-new Call of Duty - Black Ops storyline featuring new characters and returning characters
- Unique single-player campaign that contains two time periods linked by characters and their actions
- Special Strike Force missions, in which the players action affect the outcome of gameplay and the overall campaign
- Variety of multiplayer modes and play options
This is an English translation of the Chinese statement in the World of Warcraft China operations update dated April 10, 2024.
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