Blizzard Entertainment will not host its annual BlizzCon event this year due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The event is usually held later in the year, with BlizzCon 2019 kicking off on November 1st and concluding on November 2nd. In early April, Blizzard announced that it was uncertain about hosting BlizzCon this year.
On the BlizzCon website, Smith said “after considering our options, we’ve come to the very difficult decision to not have BlizzCon this year.” Smith said that last April, amid multiple event cancellations over concerns related to the coronavirus pandemic, it was “too early to know whether BlizzCon 2020 will be feasible.”
Blizzard fans hoping for updates from the company and the sense of camaraderie that comes from BlizzCon may have something to look forward to in 2021.
“We’re talking about how we might be able to channel the BlizzCon spirit and connect with you in some way online, far less impacted by the state of health and safety protocols for mass in-person gatherings. We’d want to do this as soon as we could, but given that this is new-ish territory and the different factors involved, it will most likely be sometime early next year. BlizzCon is also a stage for big esports events in Blizzard games each year, so we’re also looking into alternatives for supporting some of the high-level competition that would normally take place at the show,” Smith said.
BlizzCon is just one of many video game conventions that have been canceled this year as a result of the pandemic. QuakeCon, Gamescom, and Tokyo Game Show have all been canceled, too. The biggest gaming event of the season, E3, was canceled back in early March.
