World of Warcraftrecently announced it was walking back its decision to increase the cost of its products in Ukraine. This decision came in light of heavy criticism towards the original announcement to increase the cost ofWorld of Warcraftin certain countries.
On June 5,World of Warcraftannounced it would be increasing the costsof its games and subscriptions in Ukraine and Turkey in the attempt to balance prices for inflation and cost of living. Though the increase varied in each country and from product to product, the average price increase would seeWoWand its subscriptions cost about 30% more in these places.
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While few gamers will ever be happy to learn their favorite games are about to become more expensive,World of Warcraftplayers were especially upset about the product price increase in Ukraine. The country has been in a war with Russia for over a year now, and manyWoWfans pointed out it was tone-deaf to increase prices in Ukraine given the circumstances. Blizzard listened, and posted a week later that it had decided not to increase prices forWorld of Warcraftin Ukraineat this time.
The announcement did not mention anything about the announced price increases in Turkey, so these players will probably still have to spend more money to playWorld of Warcraft. This price increase comes into effect on July 5, so affected players who still want to buyWorld of Warcraftgames or subscription time should do so before the cost changes.
With drastic variances in the buying power of currency and cost of living in different nations, Blizzard has run into similar problems in the past. In February,Hearthstoneraised its prices in several countries, including both Ukraine and Turkey. The cost increase varied greatly, with some prices doubling, tripling, or even quadrupling. For example, a Mega Bundle in Argentina costs half of what a minimum wage employee would make in a month.
World of Warcraftfans are glad to hearBlizzard has reneged on this decision for the time being, but many are upset it tried to do so in the first place. While it is good that the company listened to feedback, its initial attempt, and that it stated the cost would not be increasing “at this time,” suggest it may try to do so again in the future. IfWorld of Warcraftdoes eventually increase prices in Ukraine, hopefully it is once the nation’s troubles are well and truly over.
