14 DAY TRIAL // Developer Blizzard is the latest video game-focused company that is no longer doing business in Crimea because of the sanctions that the United States has placed on the region and on Russia after the territory was occupied.
The video games affected include World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Diablo 3, and Starcraft, as well as the unreleased Heroes of the Storm.
It seems that the company has been sending notifications to all players in the area, according to VentureBeat, in order to explain why it was forced to take the radical measure of blocking access.
It states, "In accordance with current trade regulations relating to the region of Crimea, we are legally required to suspend access to your Battle.net account."
It's unclear whether gamers in Crimea can use solutions like proxies in order to gain access to their games or if their only hope is that sanctions against Russia are lifted in the coming months.
Valve also blocked players in the area from Steam earlier in the year.
Presumably, other operators will face pressure from the United States government to do something similar in the coming months.
The number of affected gamers is not known at the moment.
Video gaming is affected by international tension
Crimean gamers might no longer be able to play Blizzard titles or to log into Steam, but this is not the only effect that international relations are having on the industry.
Russian's invasion of the region was condemned by the United States, the European Union, the United Nations, and NATO.
At the moment, the two sides are trying to ease tensions and to make sure that violent conflict in Ukraine is limited, which might lead to the lifting of some sanctions in the future.
Iran is also affected by sanctions that also affect video game companies.
Currently, both Sony and Microsoft are trying to penetrate the Chinese market for the first time in more than a decade.
The local government has decided to allow for home consoles to be legally sold in the country, but it still places strong controls on the content that can be launched for them.
This, coupled with the relative high prices of the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, means that sales are reported to be limited.