Tokyo Game Show 2021 and PAX East 2021 will both be online only events this year

Both the Tokyo Game Show 2021 and PAX East 2021 events will not take place in person this year, and will instead both be held primarily online, the organisers for both events have announced within the last 24 hours.

ReedPop and Penny Arcade, the organisers for the PAX series of events were the first of the two to announce yesterday evening, saying that the planned PAX East event to take place on June 3 to June 6 this year will no longer go ahead due to ongoing safety concerns with the global pandemic, and will instead be replaced with PAX Online to take place from July 15 to July 18. Both companies are optimistic for a return to in-person events by September, with PAX West currently still scheduled to include "in-person festivities" for that show and PAX Unplugged following in December.  

Then this morning, the organisers of the Tokyo Game Show followed suit with their own announcement (as per GamesIndustry.biz), declaring that the Japan-based event will also be held primarily online from September 30 to October 3 for the general public, although they will hold a smaller press-and-influencer only event with a small number of invitees where they will be able to play games and interview exhibitors. The organisers also say they have plans for a "virtual booth experience" to be shared online, and all presentations and talks from the show will be broadcast online in both Japanese and English for fans to enjoy from the safety of their own homes.

It's a similar story with most events on the gaming calendar thus far, as the world is still dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Though vaccines are rolling out across the world, organisers are still understandably cautious about returning to holding large-scale events in person too quickly, with E3 2021 reportedly set to be a three-day digital event in June while Europe's own Gamescom will be a hybrid digital/physical event in August.