Screw it, can we just hit pause on the year and do a reset? The way things have been going, I feel like it’s only fair to confirm that 2020 is indeed cancelled. In news that’ll surprise absolutely none of you, QuakeCon 2020 has been called off for the year, due to that viral scourge that I’m sick of addressing by its proper name so I’m just going to say that it rhymes with Barcelona Iris.
Id Software’s annual shindig for fans of DOOM and Quake, gaming’s most underrated celebration of love, peace and rockets has been running every single year since 1996 when the first event kicked off at the Best Western Hotel in Texas many moons ago. With the world on lockdown, Id Software has had to face a hard truth and cancel the August event due to restrictions making it impossible to plan the weekend show. Here’s the official letter detailing what a year without QuakeCon will be like:
To all of our friends in the QuakeCon community,
QuakeCon has always been a special event for us and for you – a time when we gather together to play games and build bonds that, for some, have lasted a quarter-century now.
In recent weeks we have spent a lot of time discussing how we might still move forward with QuakeCon this year, particularly given that it’s the 25th year of the event. However, with all of the logistical challenges and uncertainties we currently face due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s QuakeCon.
The health and safety of our employees, volunteers, vendors, sponsors, and players will always be our top priority, and in these times it felt wrong to be talking about a gathering when gathering is the last thing any of us should be doing right now. While we don’t know what the state of the pandemic will be this August, we do know it will not be possible to complete the work and planning with partners, vendors, volunteers, and others that is required to make QuakeCon a success.
We thank all of you – especially the volunteers – for all your work in building and supporting this event year after year. We hope to work with you to come up with other ways to celebrate the spirit of QuakeCon this August, and we look forward to the return of this amazing event next year.
Until then, be safe, look after each other, and play games.
Peace, Love and Rockets,
id Software and Bethesda Softworks
That’s a shame. While I was hoping to see if anything was happening with Quake beyond its current Champions multiplayer game, I was also hoping that there would be news on DOOM Eternal’s promised single-player expansions and how Battle Mode will evolve. Instead, you’ll have to settle for something digital with which to rip and tear into your eyeballs as Id Software looks to try their hand at streaming their announcements online for all to see.
Last Updated: April 1, 2020
MechMachine
April 1, 2020 at 10:43
Man, After Ripping and Tearing my way through Doom, It’s a pity. That would have been one hell of a after party. Such an incredible game. So intense, I had to take breaks from it. Sound Design, The way they build up the character through a minimal yet powerful story. The weapons and the incredible sound design, including music. The most most important of all, the art. Wow, Just wow.
MechMachine
April 1, 2020 at 12:06
Is this a April fools joke ?