Has Russia disappeared from the list of blocked countries?

[INOY.6945]

Hello everybody!

I would like to receive an official response from ArenaNet representatives regarding the unblocking of the Russian region.

Since June 2022, Russia has been on the list of blocked countries. We could not buy the game, as before, directly from our country. Just a few days ago, we discovered that the Steam version of Guild Wars 2 in Russia has become available for download (trial version). Today we saw that Russia has disappeared from the page of blocked countries:

We also managed to register a new account on the official website from Russia. Today I contacted the Guild Wars 2 support team with a request to comment on these changes, but they replied that they did not have such information. 

In this regard, I ask Arenanet employees who are authorized to answer such questions to give an answer in this topic.

Thanks!

[TheQuickFox.3826]

If you want to search for answers for yourself, ArenaNet, as USA located business, is bound to these rules by the USA State:

https://www.state.gov/russia-business-advisory/

[INOY.6945]

9 minutes ago, TheQuickFox.3826 said:

If you want to search for answers for yourself, ArenaNet, as USA located business, is bound to these rules by the USA State:

https://www.state.gov/russia-business-advisory/

Greetings, I'm not looking for an answer to the Russia blocking question. We here are well aware that gaming is a business and companies risk sanctions by cooperating with Russia. If you read my post carefully, I am asking the administration of the company “why Russia disappeared from the list of blocked countries” and now buying Guild Wars 2 is available from Russia. As well as registering a new account (although for two years we could not register accounts). I just want to make sure that this is not some mistake on ArenaNet's part, but really a change of policy towards Russia.

 

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

It is unlikely you will get an answer on the forum.  You can send a support ticket via the 'Support' link above/below and ask about the issue.

Good luck.

[INOY.6945]

I wrote in the original post that I tried to contact support, but they replied that they didn't have that information, so I tried to get an answer on the forum.

8 hours ago, Inculpatus cedo.9234 said:

It is unlikely you will get an answer on the forum.  You can send a support ticket via the 'Support' link above/below and ask about the issue.

Good luck.

I wrote in the original post that I tried to contact support, but they replied that they didn't have that information, so I tried to get an answer on the forum.

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

Oh, sorry.  The only chance you might have is if Rubi happens upon the thread.  She may  or may not have information on the issue.

Good luck. 

[Stelawrat.6589]

On 4/26/2024 at 12:13 PM, INOY.6945 said:

Hello everybody!

I would like to receive an official response from ArenaNet representatives regarding the unblocking of the Russian region.

Since June 2022, Russia has been on the list of blocked countries. We could not buy the game, as before, directly from our country. Just a few days ago, we discovered that the Steam version of Guild Wars 2 in Russia has become available for download (trial version). Today we saw that Russia has disappeared from the page of blocked countries:

We also managed to register a new account on the official website from Russia. Today I contacted the Guild Wars 2 support team with a request to comment on these changes, but they replied that they did not have such information. 

In this regard, I ask Arenanet employees who are authorized to answer such questions to give an answer in this topic.

Thanks!

@Rubi Bayer.8493 I'd be interested in that as well, specifically interested in who determines which countries are included on the list. Is it ArenaNet or NCSoft? 

[INOY.6945]

1 hour ago, Stelawrat.6589 said:

@Rubi Bayer.8493 I'd be interested in that as well, specifically interested in who determines which countries are included on the list. Is it ArenaNet or NCSoft? 

Thank you for your interest in this issue! I would appreciate it if Rubi could actually provide an answer. As a guild leader of a large Russian-speaking community, I can confirm that this topic has excited thousands of players from Russia, but I cannot confirm the new status of Russia without an official answer from ArenaNet.

[Rubi Bayer.8493]

Hello! I can let you know that we do audit and update that list periodically based on various factors, including evolving regulations. 

[INOY.6945]

11 hours ago, Rubi Bayer.8493 said:

Hello! I can let you know that we do audit and update that list periodically based on various factors, including evolving regulations. 

Thank you for taking the time to reply!

Does this mean that the decision to unblock Russia is an official decision of NC Soft and ArenaNet, and can we expect all expansion packs to appear on Steam? Since at the moment there is only the core version of Guild Wars 2 with the Soto expansion?

[LichOverlord.6329]

On 4/27/2024 at 9:44 AM, INOY.6945 said:

Greetings, I'm not looking for an answer to the Russia blocking question. We here are well aware that gaming is a business and companies risk sanctions by cooperating with Russia. If you read my post carefully, I am asking the administration of the company “why Russia disappeared from the list of blocked countries” and now buying Guild Wars 2 is available from Russia. As well as registering a new account (although for two years we could not register accounts). I just want to make sure that this is not some mistake on ArenaNet's part, but really a change of policy towards Russia.

 

I think its pretty straightforward - Anet is beholden to international sanction laws, and due to Russia invading Ukraine, there have been a number of sanctions against the country by not just the USA, but by numerous UN and NATO-affiliated countries throughout the world

These sanctions prevent business from being done in Russia in many different forms, and so if there's a law against it there's really not much Anet can do about it

As Rubi said, however, these regulations change and evolve over time, and I would imagine that as certain sanction ease, especially with global focus shifting towards Israel and Palestine, they may find themselves able to do business in Russia once more

Anet and NCSOFT are businesses - if they're allowed to, they'll do business in Russia. I think its fair to say that this isn't a mere error, and Rubi has confirmed that this is the case.

[INOY.6945]

15 minutes ago, LichOverlord.6329 said:

I think its pretty straightforward - Anet is beholden to international sanction laws, and due to Russia invading Ukraine, there have been a number of sanctions against the country by not just the USA, but by numerous UN and NATO-affiliated countries throughout the world

These sanctions prevent business from being done in Russia in many different forms, and so if there's a law against it there's really not much Anet can do about it

As Rubi said, however, these regulations change and evolve over time, and I would imagine that as certain sanction ease, especially with global focus shifting towards Israel and Palestine, they may find themselves able to do business in Russia once more

Anet and NCSOFT are businesses - if they're allowed to, they'll do business in Russia. I think its fair to say that this isn't a mere error, and Rubi has confirmed that this is the case.

We're well aware of that. I just wanted to get official confirmation from ArenaNet that this is not a mistake, but a real change in Russia's status. In any case, we are still in a state of financial lockdown. Steam remains the only feature to directly purchase Guild Wars 2 from Russia, but the problem is that all of the game's expansions are not available there. Only the core version with the Soto expansion, so I'm interested to see if ArenaNet plans to provide all expansions for purchase.