"Warcraft" producer Blizzard Entertainment recently released the beta version for the latest game in its arsenal, titled "Heart of the Storm," in May 19. As excited fans powered the game and began playing, they noticed something odd - a minor detail that nevertheless poses multiple questions. Tychus Findlay seems to have quit smoking.

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"Heart of the Storm" is a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA), much like "Defense of the Ancients" (DOTA), one of Blizzard's most popular titles. Much like the latter, "Heart of the Storm" pits characters from many of Blizzard's games, including "Warcraft," "Starcraft" and "Diablo," together in an arena for the ultimate player-versus-player (PvP) action.

Long-time Blizzard fans will recognize the game's promise of pitting characters across various titles through the producers' post on their website, which reads: "Get ready to unleash the Burning Hells with Diablo, kick up a revolution with Raynor, and seek vengeance with Sylvanas, because 'Heroes of the Storm' Open Beta testing has officially begun."

Tychus Findlay is one of the main characters in "Starcraft." He was a human space marine born in the desolate Mar Sara. Findlay's aggressive character and past riddled with pain and betrayal makes him both an excellent ally on the battlefield, and a fragile, unpredictable soldier everywhere else. His strong-arm demeanor is complemented perfectly by his facial features and his propensity to smoke a gigantic cigar while on duty.

So why exactly did Blizzard choose to edit out Tychus' most prominent feature?

This might have something to do with "Heart of the Storm" having a Teen ESRB rating, which applies to all regions. Blizzard wanted the game to earn a single rating throughout the United States, and since even the slightest hint of cigar smoking could give a game a mature status, the game company had to make a decision.

They had two options: either remove the cigar completely, or make two different models, one smoking, and one not smoking. Apparently, Blizzard did not want to spend extra on character models just for one accessory, so instead they opted out of Tychus' big cigar.

Moreover, similar judgment calls were made for other playable characters in "Heart of the Storm," which includes removing Abathur's Skelethur skin. 

Tagstychus findlay, heart of the swarm, blizzard, starcraft, cigar, Blizzard Entertainment