E3 is cancelled due to COVID19 risk

If you ever needed an excuse to do nothing but sit in your house and interact with your fellow human beings through the relative safety of VR chat, now is the time.

After careful consideration, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) has officially cancelled E3 for 2020.

The news comes less than a month after Sony cancelled its plans for PAX East for the same reasons. Back then, however, an E3 spokesperson said that the event would continue unchanged. However -in light of recent events- the ESA has went back on their decision.

The ESA made the following statement:

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,

This decision came just hours after the New York Times reported that the World Heath Organization declared COVID19 a 'pandemic'.

The ESA says it's working with attendees in order to give out "full refunds".

The best promotional Image E3 ever had is for an event that isn't going to happen now.

Since the event was canceled, we now have confirmation that both Microsoft and Ubisoft have plans to host their own digital events, citing both Coronavirus concerns, as well as the fact that they now don't have a physical venue to showcase their games. No word yet from Nintendo on this issue, or whether they will be hosting their own events.

What is the Coronavirus? (In case you've been living under a rock)

Corona chan is the anthropomorphized interpretation of the deadly strain of SARS that originated in Wuhan China. Created by some anons on 4chan, it takes a cynical approach to the fears surrounding the deadly pathogen.

COVID19, (A.K.A. Corronavirus) is a close relative of the SARS virus. It's a highly contagious virus that can quickly progress into multiple organ failures, and Pneumonia.

So far, there are over 4,000 confirmed deaths worldwide.

Again, a great E3 poster that no one is going to use now that the thing is cancelled.

So far, the landscape of gaming announcements is going to be scattered, with multiple separate announcements from multiple studios and publishers. Stay tuned for more news that should have been at E3.