BitSummit indie game festival called off to prevent coronavirus spread

BitSummit, the annual independent game development festival that takes place in Kyoto, Japan, has been cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak. 

It's the latest in a growing number of industry events to have been called off due to the spread of COVID-19, with E3 2020, the Google I/O dev conference, Eve Fanfest, and Unreal Fest Europe having also been shelved. 

The situation has also resulted in large game companies like Bungie and Microsoft encouraging or enforcing remote working policies in an attempt to protect employees and help stem the spread of the virus. 

A message posted on the BitSummit Facebook page said the event will no longer take place from May 9 to 10 as planned because of "growing concerns" surrounding the outbreak. 

"We would like to extend our deepest apologies for this inconvenience to all of our partners, supporters, exhibitors and long time visitors who were eager to participate in the 8th edition of BitSummit," reads the statement.

"The safety of our visitors and participants being our very first priority, we have made the difficult decision to avoid any chance of the virus spreading any further."

Organizers will continue to work on the next edition of BitSummit as planned, and have promised to share more information in the coming weeks.