E3, one of the biggest trade shows of the video game industry, will be held in online form in 2022, due to the ongoing Covid-19 wave caused by the Omicron variant. This marks the third year that E3 has skipped an in-person event due to the pandemic.
The ESA, which organises the event, said in a statement to VentureBeat: “Due to the ongoing health risks surrounding COVID-19 and its potential impact on the safety of exhibitors and attendees, E3 will not be held in person in 2022. We are nonetheless excited about the future of E3 and look forward to announcing more details soon.”
E3 was outright cancelled in 2020 in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak. When the event was held in an online form in 2021, the ESA had mentioned that it looked forward to hosting E3 2022 as an in-person event. However, with Covid-19 cases surging in the United States after the emergence of the Omicron, the ESA has opted to host the event entirely online.
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E3 is only one among a host of entertainment industry events which have been delayed or shifted online in the wake of the Omicron Covid-19 surge. The Grammys have been delayed indefinitely from their original airing date of January 31, while the Sundance Film Festival is also going online-only.