Germany has banned large public events until at least Aug. 31, meaning the giant video game convention, set for late August in Cologne, will have to be postponed or canceled.
It could be game over for Gamescom 2020.
The German government unveiled on Wednesday new coronavirus regulations banning all large public events until at least Aug. 31 as the country keeps battling the pandemic.
Gamescom, the world's largest video game convention, was set to run Aug. 25-29 in the western German city of Cologne.
The event, which attracts hundreds of thousands of gamers and industry attendees, will now have to be postponed or canceled.
Gamescom organizers did not immediately comment on the new regulations, which German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced Wednesday evening. Gamescom ruled out a postponement earlier this month, insisting the event would go ahead as planned.
This is in contrast to L.A.'s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), originally scheduled for June 9-11, which was called off in early March, and the Games Development Conference, which went online-only amid the coronavirus crisis.
Just last week, Gamescom sent out a reminder to attendees to book their accreditation for 2020.
