PlayStation pulls out of PAX East over coronavirus concerns

Sony Interactive Entertainment has announced that PlayStation won’t be able to make an appearance at PAX East this year due to concerns about COVID-19, also known as coronavirus.

While PlayStation was originally scheduled to show off several upcoming games, including titles such as The Last of Us Part II, Doom Eternal, and Personal 5 Royal, the studio has announced that it has decided to pull out in favour of  “the health and safety of its global workforce.”

You can read the official statement, originally posted on the PlayStation Blog, below.

UPDATE: Today, Sony Interactive Entertainment made the decision to cancel its participation at PAX East in Boston this year due to increasing concerns related to COVID-19 (also known as “novel coronavirus”). We felt this was the safest option as the situation is changing daily. We are disappointed to cancel our participation in this event, but the health and safety of our global workforce is our highest concern.

Developer Naughty Dog took to Twitter to issue its own statement on the issue, reassuring fans that they’ll still get The Last of Us Part II content prior to the game’s launch on May 29th, 2020.

We’re so sad to have to miss PAX East! We were really looking forward to meeting you and seeing your reactions to the demo. Although we know this makes the wait until May 29 a bit harder, we appreciate your understanding. Don’t worry, we’ll have more to share closer to launch. https://t.co/tIJ0Z7Ztcs

— Naughty Dog (@Naughty_Dog) February 19, 2020

The appearance of PlayStation at PAX East isn’t the only thing that’s been affected by coronavirus. Facebook previously stated that it expects delays in Oculus Quest production due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The Nintendo Switch port of The Outer Worlds has been pushed back indefinitely due to coronavirus affecting the offices of the Virtuos team working on the port. All team members have been confirmed to be okay and that the closure of the offices is a precautionary measure.

Nintendo has also issued an apology for “inevitable” production and shipment delays of Nintendo Switch consoles and accessories, along with copies of the top-selling Switch game Ring-Fit Adventure, as the coronavirus outbreak has also had an effect on hardware production.