The Danish toy company LEGO announced on Tuesday that they are delaying the LEGO Overwatch 2 "Zero Hour" set which was scheduled to drop on Feb. 1st, 2022, citing the allegations of sexism and abuse against Activision Blizzard put forth by multiple US governmental bodies. The delay was first reported by The Brick Fan on Tuesday, which is a LEGO review website.
In a statement given to The Brick Fan, a LEGO representative said:
"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."
The LEGO Overwatch 2 set in question features the scene from the Overwatch 2 "Zero Hour" cinematic trailer, in which the cast of Overwatch fights a giant robot.
Overwatch has collaborated with LEGO to make other sets in the past, including a D.Va + Reinhardt set, a Hammond set, a Bastion set, and a Junkrat + Roadog set, among others. However, it is now unclear what future LEGO and Blizzard collaborations will have, as Activision Blizzard continues to face backlash from various sponsors and partners due to the allegations of widespread gender discrimination put forward by the State of California and the US federal government, among others.
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Full timeline of the Activision Blizzard gender discrimination lawsuit
The State of California Department of Fair Employment and Housing revealed a massive lawsuit against Activision Blizzard in the summer of 2021, alleging rampant workplace abuses targeting women that went back more than a decade. Among those abuses were salary inequities, widespread sexual harassment, and even the stealing of breast milk from lactating employees who pumped at work.
As a result of these allegations, multiple companies like Kelleog and T-Mobile have taken a step back to reevaluate their relationship with the gaming company. LEGO joined that group on Tuesday.
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