The fighting will have to stay online for now
Fighting game tournament organizer Evo has announced that its plans for an in-person 2021 showcase are cancelled.
“Due to the continuing complications of COVID-19 and the spread of the Delta Variant we have made the tough decision to cancel the Evo 2021 Showcase,” the organizer said in a statement.
Update regarding the Evo 2021 Showcase: pic.twitter.com/DjUbNXV3EP
— EVO (@EVO) September 29, 2021
Players who won the different regional competitions were set to compete in Las Vegas in November. Each main stage game would have been featured: Guilty Gear Strive, Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate, Street Fighter V: Champion Edition, Tekken 7, and Skullgirls 2nd Encore.
The organization has said it is contacting each player individually to recognize their efforts, and that it will continue working towards the return of the “big, live events that you expect from us.”
The fighting game tournament organizer was purchased by Sony and RTS last year. Evo previously announced it would return to Las Vegas for an offline tournament series in 2022. The series hosted a fully online 2021 event, featuring both main event and community tournaments, and no 2020 event due to companies dropping out of the event over allegations against a now-former organizer.
It’s a safe decision to make, considering other esports tournaments have been experiencing issues with returning to in-person events. As much as I was looking forward to seeing some high-level Guilty Gear Strive with a little bit of the hype and atmosphere I love from an Evo setting, health and safety are always the most important. For now, we’ll just be grateful we’ve got rollback.
