BlizzCon 2020 Cancelled Due to Coronavirus

Blizzard has announced that BlizzCon 2020 has been cancelled. The news comes way of Saralyn Smith, Executive Producer of BlizzCon, and only a few weeks after Blizzard revealed the show may have to be scratched due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to Smith, there have been numerous discussions since this previous update, and while the company pursued ways to host the annual gaming event this year, it couldn't figure out a way to responsibly make it work.

"Several weeks ago, I shared an update about our uncertainty around holding BlizzCon this year," said Smith in a statement. "Since then, a lot has changed . . . and a lot also hasn't changed. During this time, we've had many discussions about what holding a convention could look like in light of all the health and safety considerations we'd want to make. We've also talked about different paths we could take, and how each one could be complicated by fluctuations in national and local health guidelines in the months ahead. Ultimately, after considering our options, we've come to the very difficult decision to not have BlizzCon this year."

Smith continued:

"We're feeling deeply disappointed about this decision, and imagine many of you will feel the same. I truly love BlizzCon, and I know that's a sentiment shared by everyone at Blizzard. We will sorely miss connecting with so many of you at the convention and 'recharging our geek batteries' this fall."

Smith adds that Blizzard is looking into and discussing alleviating the disappointing news with an online version of the show that captures the spirit of BlizzCon. Unfortunately, for now, Blizzard isn't ready to reveal any details on this online replacement, but Smith notes it will most likely go down sometime early next year.

At the moment, it's unclear what this news means for the developer's upcoming games and content, such as Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2. Typically BlizzCon is the place where we get updates on the company's upcoming and ongoing lineups, but obviously this won't be the case this year.

"We'll tell you more about our plans as they develop," added Smith, "but in the meantime, we hope to see you exploring the Shadowlands, hanging out in the Tavern, pushing the payload, and wherever else in the Blizzard universes you may roam.