It’s Official: No Sega at Gamescom 2010

“A Purely Economic Decision,” According to Statement

SegaStuff.de has affirmed what was reported Friday–Sega will not have a presence at next month’s Gamescom in Cologne, Germany.  The company had previously attended Gamescom 2009.

SegaStuff obtained an official company statement via E-Mail that chalked up the decision as “purely economic.”  The company cautions this is not a permanent decision, so there remains a possibility for Sega to resurface at Gamescom 2011.  The statement also refers to Gamescom as the “most important” European trade event.

Still, it means European gamers and press may not see more of the latest Sega fare–including the upcoming Sonic titles–for a while, now that Japan Expo in Paris has ended, and the expectation any titles on display at London’s Summer of Sonic convention may only be what’s been seen before.  There may not be significant developments  on those fronts until the Tokyo Game Show, which is in mid-September.

The statement is available, loosely translated, below.  This may not be the only well known convention Sega’s opted out of this year.  We’re working on that story and we will bring you more later this week on TSSZ News.

Despite great success on the SEGA Gamescom 2009 and the European importance of the Cologne fair, SEGA has decided not to be represented this year with its own stand. This decision has nothing to do with the site in any way, and does not mean that SEGA will no longer participate in future on the grounds – the non-participation is a purely economic decision for the year 2010. The GamesCom remains for us remains the most important European trade event.