Hacking is common in most prominent FPS titles and Overwatch is of no exemption. A while ago, Blizzard has taken huge steps in relinquishing the ban hammer in areas most notable for hacking incidents particularly in NA and in CN, eradicating accounts that have violated the game's standard rules and its stipulated Terms & Conditions. But one player has addressed that Blizzard may have forgotten to address its issue with regards to its Korean community and that the rampant hacking has now taking a toll on to its entire community.
State of Overwatch In Korea
One player addressed his concern regarding the rampant hacking issues in Overwatch Korea stating that over a month of competitive experience, 1 out of 3 games have a hacker in it and that due to the severity of the situation; even casual players know all of the names of the applications. He even had one teammate activating his own app after they got stomped by one opponent that was blatantly hacking. This only explains how easily hacks can be accessed and obtained in the game without the system filtering their accounts.
Effects
For the first time in Korea, League of Legends was overthrown as the most actively played online game - and Overwatch did that in just a matter of weeks upon its official release; to which no other games have ever done so. This proves the growing potential of Overwatch in Korea - had it not for hackers.
According to a Reddit thread, Overwatch is now declining in popularity due to the effects of hackers which basically ruined the experienced of most players including those that aspire to be in the professional scene. He even stated that due to the severity of the situation, most Korean gamers choose to play in US region, where they find themselves playing under huge pings so long as they can avoid the hackers in their country (This also explains why some players from NA kept on seeing Koreans in their server).
Blizzard recently announced that they will take Overwatch into the realm of Esport and that they're planning to make the FPS title the biggest Esport game in history. But if they really wanted to make the game open for competition across the globe, they should start eradicating the rats that have been chipping away the foundation of their game.
