Capcom dev tests positive for coronavirus, game delays possible

Capcom today announced one of its Osaka-based employees has tested positive for coronavirus, and it could affect future games.

Right now the games industry is gearing up for a big delay season. The coronavirus is forcing countless dev teams to work at home, interrupting the normal flow of office-based iterative games development, and more importantly, the logistics of shipping physical games. Just yesterday Sony delayed The Last of Us 2 despite the game being almost finished.

Now Capcom could be facing these kinds of delays. The company just reported its first confirmed case of COVID-19 in its internal offices, but hasn't yet decided if it'll force developers to work at home. Many areas of Japan still don't have stay-at-home orders.

Capcom Co., Ltd. (Capcom) today confirmed that an employee at one of its group companies (Chuo-ku, Osaka) has contracted novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

In cooperation with local health agencies, Capcom is carrying out the following measures to prevent further spread of the infection.

• Reviewing the employee's movements, activities and people who may have had close contact with the employee in question
• Considering the issue of stay-at-home orders for employees who had close contact with the employee in question
• Disinfecting areas such as the office in which the employee in question works

Capcom is committed to prioritizing the safety of its employees, customers and business partners and will work with the relevant authorities in carrying out the necessary measures to prevent the spread of infection.

The company is reportedly preparing a big game slate for 2020's next-gen consoles. Reports say Capcom could release up to four games in FY2020, which ends on March 31, 2021, including another big mainline Resident Evil game.

We've seen evidence of big next-gen ramp ups as early as May 2019, where Capcom's game releases dramatically thinned out despite its R&D and employee counts surging.