What a wild, strange trip it’s been.
It seems that the Coronavirus has claimed its umpteenth victim of the gaming world. Despite insisting that everything was still full steam ahead and that E3 2020 would be a go, it seems that the organizers of the event have decided to cancel E3 2020 after all.
To be clear, this news is not official yet, and E3 has had no statements on the matter. However, it is being reported by multiple outlets and is being fed by reputable sources.
The most important source to mention is likely the recent tweet from the official Devolver Digital Twitter, which simply stated: “Cancel your E3 flights and hotels, y’all.” That’s far from the only thing fueling the reporting, though – Wario64, a well-known insider account within the gaming community, also tweeted that there would likely be word of an official announcement soon. We’ve placed both tweets below.
Cancel your E3 flights and hotels, y’all.
— Devolver Digital (@devolverdigital) March 11, 2020
It is worth noting that the Wario64 tweet directly retweets Devolver Digital’s, so it could certainly just be a case of an echo. Several other insiders, namely Limited Run Games’ Josh Fairhurst, took to social media to discuss how the Entertainment Software Association just recently opened hotel booking for the convention’s exhibitors, and that it seems reactionary to cancel the event this early. Mike Futter, a notable gaming journalist, responded to Fairhurst by urging him not to book his room tonight.
There are several more names weighing in on this issue, and it’s become an absolutely buzzing topic in as little as a few hours. Waypoint’s Patrick Klepek, Mastiff Games’ David Bruno, and Jason Schreier have all jumped in to voice their opinions, with the result seeming to be a variety of answers both confirming and denying the upcoming cancellation.
Word is official announcement coming soon
— Wario64 (@Wario64) March 11, 2020
So which is it? As we stated, we know that the official E3 organizers insisted that the event would still be moving ahead in response to the cancellation of GDC 2020, which has recently moved onto an online format. However, since that official announcement, we’ve also had hundreds of death due to the Coronavirus, entire nations shut down borders, and many, many more events be canceled.
One thing is for sure, if the rumors are true, it’ll be one of the biggest events in the gaming community, and could very well be a turning point in the choices of other events around the world. E3 is arguably one of the biggest events of the year, with monumental names and developers taking the opportunity to lay out their plans for the future in front of millions of attentive fans. To cancel E3 would be absolutely incredible in all the worst ways.
But even more than that, wouldn’t it also be the safest option? At the end of the day, the safety of everyone has to come first, from the fans to the developers all the way up to the CEO of every company that would’ve been attending. If nothing else, respect to whoever it is that ends up with the final say on a call that important.
