E3 2020 Has Now Been Officially Cancelled!

Earlier this week, unconfirmed reports emerged that E3 2020 was set to be canceled. This was, of course, entirely on the cards. Particularly since we’ve already seen a number of other major events cancelled due to concerns surrounding the Coronavirus.

Well, it may have taken a couple of days, but following an official announcement on their website, E3 2020 is 100% confirmed as canceled!

E3 2020

In the statement, E3 has confirmed that the event (due to start this June) will now no longer be going ahead.

“After careful consultation with our member companies regarding the health and safety of everyone in our industry – our fans, our employees, our exhibitors, and our longtime E3 partners – we have made the difficult decision to cancel E3 2020, scheduled for June 9-11 in Los Angeles.

Following increased and overwhelming concerns about the COVID-19 virus, we felt this was the best way to proceed during such an unprecedented global situation. We are very disappointed that we are unable to hold this event for our fans and supporters. But we know it’s the right decision based on the information we have today.

Our team will be reaching out directly to exhibitors and attendees with information about providing full refunds. We are also exploring options with our members to coordinate an online experience to showcase industry announcements and news in June 2020. Updates will be shared on E3Expo.com.

We thank everyone who shared their views on reimagining E3 this year. We look forward to bringing you E3 2021 as a reimagined event that brings fans, media, and the industry together in a showcase that celebrates the global video game industry.”

What Do We Think?

In fairness, the cancelation always seemed likely. The big remaining question, however, is whether there will be some form of E3 2020 at all. Yes, the statement did hint towards an online broadcast version of it. Even that, however, seems to be somewhat doubtful based on their tone. It will, after all, still require a lot of coordination and communication.

All going well, however, we will at least get something. Lord knows that there are plenty of game developers who, although not keen to attend a physical event, will still be keen to have a big platform to launch their upcoming game trailers from. We will, of course, keep you posted with all the latest news. For now, however, we’ve just got to wait and see!

What do you think? Are you surprised by this announcement? Disappointed? – Let us know in the comments!