The move bars Russians from any new transactions with the company, which includes both the sales of its games and in-game purchases. Activision Blizzard announced the move in a publicly-shared letter to employees.

The ban does n’t specify whether the ban includes both digital and physical games. It does, however, highlight some of the contributions the company and its employees made to Ukraine.

I’d like to remind you that our employee assistance program is available to those who need emotional support during this difficult time,’ Alegre says.

Activision Blizzard joins a growing list of game companies that have stopped doing business in Russia and Belarus. The block includes Xbox games, but also products associated with Windows, office, Microsoft 365, and more.

Ea games removed Russian teams from its FIFA and NHL games, and later cut off all sales to Russia and Belarus. Activision Blizzard has also taken similar steps in barring physical and digital sales to customers in both countries.

Epic is stopping commerce with Russia in our games. We’re not blocking access for the same reason other communication tools remain online. The free world should keep all lines of dialogue open.

It’s unclear whether the Fortnite developer’s ban on commerce applies to microtransactions, games, or both.

Mykhailo federov called for Xbox and PlayStation to’temporarily block’ Russian and belorussian accounts. He later asked developers, including Epic games, Nintendo, Rockstar, and Tencent to halt their games in Russia.