Trump's Tencent ban worries 'Fortnite' fans who say they'll 'vote for Biden' if the game is banned
President Donald Trump issued an executive order on August 6 banning financial transactions with the Chinese company WeChat, which is owned by Tencent. This new ban has come as a great shock to many but especially the gaming community. For those who don't know, Tencent fully owns Riot Games and holds stakes in Epic Games and the PUBG Corporation. While there has been no indication yet on whether this Tencent ban will expand to include those properties, the future of popular games like 'League of Legends', 'PUBG' and 'Fortnite' is now in jeopardy and the fans are not having it.
While the ban is reportedly part of Trump's move towards banning the social media platform TikTok, there are rumors and speculations doing the rounds that suggest that these popular games could be next and gamers are taking to Twitter to vent out their anger and frustration. Here's what they've been saying.
"DID HE JUST F***ING BAN FORTNITE WTF," one fan tweeted.
"Trump just put a ban (maybe by accident) on Tencent a Chinese company that has stake in almost all the top videogames companies... I know y’all don’t give AF about TikTok... But are gamers okay with losing Fortnite, and many others?," another fan asked.
Trump just put a ban (maybe by accident) on Tencent a Chinese company that has stake in almost all the top videogames companies....
— J.D. (@jdwitherspoon) August 7, 2020
I know y’all don’t give AF about TikTok...But are gamers okay with losing Fortnite, and many others? 🤔https://t.co/YJVA3cI1Lq
Right now, it's not immediately clear if 'Fortnite' will be affected by the ban but that's not stopping the rising anger in the gaming community. A number of fans have declared that they will actively vote against Trump if he goes ahead and expands the ban to cover these massively popular games.
"If they ban Tiktok, Fortnite and League of Legends in the U.S., they're gonna get the highest youth turnout in f***ing history lol," one fan noted.
If they ban Tiktok, Fortnite and League of Legends in the U.S., they're gonna get the highest youth turnout in fucking history lol.
— Ronald Lo (@The_UmbrellaMan) August 7, 2020
"If they ban Fortnite, the 10-year-olds will join the riots," a fan commented.
If they ban Fortnite, the 10 year olds will join the riots.
— Random Johnson (@JohnStudda) August 7, 2020
Another fan wrote, "@realDonaldTrump Ban Fortnite and I will vote for Biden just to watch everything burn down in flames."
.@realDonaldTrump Ban Fortnite and I will vote for Biden just to watch everything burn down in flames.
— WestVirginiaB0T (@WVB1776) August 7, 2020
It's not just fans in the US who are reacting to the news. People from around the world are worried that this ban might affect their favorite games, especially 'Fortnite', which has a massive international following.
"Donald Trump might ban fortnite in the usa? What the f***? Atleast I live in Canada," one fan wrote.
Donald Trump might ban fortnite in the usa? What the fuck?
— Grillthegrate (@grillthegrate) August 7, 2020
Atleast I live in Canada.
While it might not be a household name, Tencent is the world's largest video game company. Based in China, the company fully owns Riot Games, 40% of Epic Games, 5% of Activision Blizzard, 5% of Ubisoft and a staggering number of other gaming companies. The ban, which won't take effect for another 45 days, prohibits financial dealings with WeChat in particular. The language of the order specifies "any transaction that is related to WeChat by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, with Tencent Holdings Ltd," suggesting it was written to exclude transactions involving Tencent’s video game portfolio but that doesn't mean fans are any less worried.
As one fan put it, "Well this is worrysome. It does sorta sound like any deals/contracts prior to be ban are ok. So Fortnite/clash of clans/call of duty might be ok. But regardless this is no bueno."
Well this is worrysome. It does sorta sound like any deals/contracts prior to be ban are ok. So Fortnite/clash of clans/call of duty might be ok. But regardless this is no bueno. https://t.co/PK2ciEgk3H
— Carlos Velez (@ElMalditoBatman) August 7, 2020
"From my understanding the ban is only on a subdivision of Tencent called WeChat. However if he expanded the ban to the parent company it would get Fortnite and League of Legends. I don’t think he’ll expand it just because he knows the blowback from gamers he’d get," another fan explained.
From my understanding the ban is only on a subdivision of Tecent called WeChat. However if he expanded the ban to the parent company it would get Fortnite and League of Legends. I don’t think he’ll expand it just because he knows the blowback from gamers he’d get.
— BlackLivesMatter 🌺🏳️🌈🌻 (@ohiostatehack) August 7, 2020