Game developers Capcom, NetherRealm Studios and Bandai Namco announced Thursday that their respective titles, Street Fighter V: Champion Edition, Mortal Kombat 11, Dragon Ball FighterZ and Tekken, will no longer be contested in the Evolution Championship Series online event following sexual misconduct accusations against the tournament's co-founder and president, Joey "MrWizard" Cuellar.
In statements on Twitter on Thursday, Capcom, NetherRealm Studios and Bandai Namco all said they have pulled their games from any form of competition or exhibition at the yearly event.
The tweet posted Thursday on the @NRSEsports account read, "We stand in solidarity with those who have spoken out against abuse. We will be pulling MK11 from EVO Online."
Capcom's statement on Twitter read in part, "Out of respect to those who have been affected and to the current investigation, we felt this was the appropriate course of action. We apologize to the players and fans who were looking forward to these tournaments."
Bandai Namco's statement read in part, "We stand in solidarity with the individuals who have spoken out against abuse within the fighting game community and stand in solidarity with our fans for their continued support."
Late Thursday, Cuellar posted a statement on Twitter in which he apologized for his actions. The statement read: "I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt anyone. I was young and reckless and did things I'm not proud of. I have been growing and maturing over the past 20 years, but that doesn't excuse anything. All I have been trying to do is become a better person. Once again, I'm truly sorry."
The developers' decisions follow multiple esports organizations, competitors and hosts for the event having withdrawn as a result of sexual misconduct allegations against Cuellar, who has been placed on administrative leave.
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