Blizzard rewards Redditor for returning StarCraft Source Code
An unexpected discovery reaped a grand reward for this StarCraft fan: Reddit user Khemist49 discovered a gold master source code disc of the original Starcraft—Blizzard's iconic 1998 Real-Time Strategy game.
Not knowing what to do with it at first, Khemist49 ultimately sent the source code back to Blizzard. The grateful company rewarded him with a pass to this year’s BlizzCon, Blizzard’s annual convention where fans gather to hear new announcements on games straight from the developers themselves.
In a story on Kotaku, Khemist49 found a CD-R reading “StarCraft Gold Master Source Code” in a “box of Blizzard stuff” he acquired through eBay. He posted about it on Reddit, where other users asked him to rip it online and some calling it him “scummy” for holding on to it.
Battling his conscience on what to do with the discovery, he ultimately received word from Blizzard themselves asking for the disc to be returned because it contained “intellectual property and trade secrets”.
After seeking legal advice, Khemist49 decided to do the right thing and return it to Blizzard. In return, he received a free copy of “Overwatch” and $250 in store credit.
But later. in a very excited post, he got a phone call from a Blizzard representative that he was going BlizzCon – all expenses paid and as gratitude for giving them back their disc.
Kotaku verified the story with Blizzard, with the latter company saying they “wanted to show an appropriate level of appreciation to the player for doing the right thing, not just from Blizzard, but on behalf of the large and active community of players who still enjoy StarCraft today.”
Good things do come to those who do the right thing after all. — TJD, GMA News