Overwatch 2 Lego Delayed Because Of "Concerns About The Progress" In Addressing Allegations At ABK

When you get right down to it, all the noise that fans and gamers make about how poorly Activision Blizzard King treats its employees won't matter. The number of players who are willing to alter their purchasing or playing habits based on the lawsuits and other numerous controversies at the company represent only a tiny minority of the money, I mean, the people and is unlikely to have a significant effect on the company's bottom line.

What could impact the bottom line is other companies deciding they don't want to do business with ABK in the future. That's something that we got word of today, as Lego -- which has made several kits featuring Overwatch characters in the past -- announced in a statement today that it would not be releasing a set based on Overwatch 2 on February 1 as scheduled.

We are currently reviewing our partnership with Activision Blizzard, given concerns about the progress being made to address continuing allegations regarding workplace culture, especially the treatment of female colleagues and creating a diverse and inclusive environment. While we complete the review, we will pause the release of a LEGO Overwatch 2 product which was due to go on sale on February 1, 2022.

It's entirely possible that the real reason for the delay is the delay of Overwatch 2 itself, which was originally slated for a 2022 release but won't launch until at least 2023. If not, then this represents the first time an ABK business partner has made an actual product -- and profit-making -- decision based on the controversy, despite a few other partners making noise about "reviewing relationships" and the like. Maybe this move by Lego will force those companies to take real action and, by doing so, force the hands of the board of the directors to step in and finally deal with CEO Bobby Kotick and the overarching culture issues at the company.