An Overwatch hostess club was summarily deleted from Twitter (via Automaton) for an event that songwriters will one day refer to as “the punch that swept the world.” But don’t worry, it’s alive again.
The club, called OW_CabaretClub, wasn’t a physical Overwatch-themed location, but rather a Twitter-based service where Overwatchers could hire women to play with them for a fee. Guests could, if they were so inclined, join in a flirtatious multiplayer game or fall asleep with their partner over voice chat.
The idea comes from Japanese hostess clubs – which any Yakuza player will be familiar with – where people (let’s face it, mostly if not exclusively men) show up and get a drink and find a lady who will listen attentively to what they say.
It wasn’t long before the club’s Twitter account disappeared from the scene. Speculation is that Blizzard didn’t take kindly to its existence and the violation of its terms of service, but I’ve contacted the studio to ask if they had any involvement in banning the club from Twitter and will report back if I get a response.
But don’t worry, it was almost replaced immediately instead, an Apex Legends-style hostess club. Under a fittingly Apex name, the new account has so far enjoyed a carefree life, offering similar services to players of EA’s hero shooter, which seems to have less strict rules about the whole thing. Or, more likely, doesn’t pay quite as much attention to people who use its brand on social media. It’s not entirely clear if the new account is connected to the banned Overwatch club, but the timing certainly makes it seem like they’re related in some way.
According to a machine-translated Japanese language ad, players can shell out a certain amount of “nyan” – which could either be a cute way of saying yen, the cryptocurrency nyan, or something else entirely – for a “base game” session of 30 minutes (1500 nyan), which can be extended in 30-minute increments for a slightly smaller fee (1000 nyan). The “sleep” service, which lasts 2 hours, costs an additional 4000 nyan, while a “hidden option” costs 6000, and isn’t that just crazy? Some of the service’s hostesses, the ad says, will not be appearing all his options.
Nonetheless, I have contacted the club and asked them to clarify these and other questions. I will let you know if I receive a response. However, my general confusion about the world we live in will probably never be clarified.
