Square Enix Follows Sony, Partially Pulls PAX East Festivities Due To Coronavirus Fears

In an update on Lodestone today, Square Enix announced that they would be cancelling the attendance of staff going to the Penny Arcade Expo in Boston next week due to fears over the coronavirus. This news follows only days after Sony pulled their full presence over the same concerns.

In the post, Square Enix makes it clear that while there will still be a booth for PAX East showing off some of the latest games to come from the gaming giant, Final Fantasy XIV specifically is greatly affected by this change.

As a result, activities such as the Artwork of Final Fantasy XIV panel, Developer signings and the fan gathering have been cancelled due to this change. 

As the community may be aware, COVID-19 (also known as “novel coronavirus”) is spreading within the East Asia region. Taking into consideration the current situation within the region, sadly SQUARE ENIX has decided to cancel the PAX East attendance of staff who would be travelling from the Japan offices. This difficult decision was based on our desire to prevent any potential spread of the virus and to prioritize the health and safety of our team and our fans.

For fans who still want to check out the MMORPG at the show, you can still attend the booth and take on Ruby Weapon, the new player experience as well as plenty of photo opportunities.