Gamescom 2021 Will Be Online-Only After All

Gamescom 2021 will no longer offer a digital and physical "hybrid" event, and will be online-only.

Following "extensive discussions with partners and exhibitors", the German Games Industry Association has made the decision to focus on a live-streamed event.

Gamescom 2021 Will Be Online-Only After All

The event's opening ceremony, "Gamescom: Opening Night Live" will still return, hosted by Geoff Keighley on August 25th.

The following two days will feature a "Gamescom Now" hub with new features for users and partners.

"Gamescom Epix" is also planned, although little information has been given other than it will allow fans to “playfully immerse themselves in the Gamescom universe on the road to Gamescom.”

Devcom, Gamescom's developer-focused sister show, will also move to an online-only structure, with August 23rd and 25th focused on content while 25th to 27th August will be based around networking and the convention's digital expo.

Devcom's industry-focused "Gamescom Biz" platform will be delayed by one year.

Felix Falk, Managing Director of "Game – The German Games Industry Association", explained the decision:

“We, as the game industry, also want to use Gamescom to show that innovations and bold developments are the best way to deal with such crises. With this in mind, the Gamescom team has been hard at work for months on Gamescom 2021, especially on the digital elements."

"Next year will be the first time that we will be able to implement many of the new concepts for the hybrid format of Gamescom. For digital Gamescom 2021, our focus is to provide even more games and reach as well as a heightened community atmosphere."

"We are therefore introducing a completely new concept called Gamescom Epix, which sends the community on a joint quest journey in social media even before Gamescom begins."

"What we want to do with this is transfer even more of the unique Gamescom atmosphere to the digital world. Together with our numerous partners, we want to make Gamescom the world’s biggest gaming event again in 2021.”