Square Enix has made the decision to cancel Final Fantasy XIV‘s North American fan festival that was scheduled to take place in San Diego this November.
Producer Naoki Yoshida cited challenges posed by COVID-19 as the reason and said that although we still have five months to go until November, Square Enix cannot guarantee the health and safety of staff and attendees.
“Despite the cancellation of the San Diego event in November, however, we have not given up on holding our next Fan Festival in North America,” Yoshida reassured fans. “In adhering to the safety guidelines and requirements set forth by national and local governments, it is likely that future events will experience a number of restrictions. As such, we are not only exploring a physical event, but also looking into alternative ways to realize the event digitally.”
The Japanese and European fan fests are still scheduled to go ahead in December and February 2021, respectively.
Yoshida also provided an update on upcoming Final Fantasy XIV patches, which are still suffering from delays because the team is unable to operate at its usual capacity. Patch 5.3, which was originally set for release on June 16th, is now more than a month away.
“Our QA team in particular has been hit hard by the loss of its regular workspace, and won’t return to full capacity until partway into June,” Yoshida explained. “With support from every department, however, they are making progress with patch preparations, and the FFXIV team as a whole is working full steam ahead.”
[Source: Square Enix]
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