Earlier this year, the Koelnmesse organizers mentioned that Gamescom 2021 was supposed to be a hybrid event, both a digital and a physical event. That’s being changed, as Gamescom 2021 is now an all-digital event. 

According to Koelnmesse and the German Games Industry Association, the decision was made after extensive discussions with partners and exhibitors; too many companies from all around the world are unable to participate in physical events due to the current environment. COVID-19 is still a problem, in case you weren’t aware.

This also means that there might not be a Gamescom Asia 2021 since Koelnmesse will most likely consolidate all Gamescom-related announcements into this one digital event. We’ve reached out to Gamescom Asia for clarification; we have a feeling the date on the banner below may need some editing this week.

Gamescom 2021 will start on 25th August with the Opening Night Live event hosted by Geoff Keighley. This will be followed by two main days of the event on 26 and 27 August. A Gamescom Now hub and Gamescom Epix community campaign event are also planned for the same week. Full comments from the organizers and partners below:

Oliver Frese, Chief Operating Officer of Koelnmesse

“Together with game – The German Games Industry Association, we have put all our energy into making Gamescom 2021 in a hybrid format possible for fans and industry alike. However, even though the hybrid concept was very well received by the partners, we had to recognize that Gamescom still comes too early for many companies in the industry due to the required planning reliability.

One thing is absolutely clear: All those involved now need planning reliability. That’s why we’re going for a purely digital Gamescom again this year and, with sufficient lead time, will be able to offer the gaming community an even stronger online event at the end of August 2021. Gamescom 2020 and other trade fairs such as DMEXCO @home 2020 and h+h cologne @home 2021 are proof that we can do this. All partners can book their participation starting immediately.”

Felix Falk, Managing Director of game – The German Games Industry Association

“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.”