Today was the worst day in Japanese game stocks in over ten years

With the closing bell of Tokyo's Stock Exchange, Japan has just experienced its worst day for game stocks in over a decade.

Nintendo, Sony, Capcom, and Konami - among others - each took a major hit today on Japan's stock exchange. As noted by game developer Dr. Serkan Toto, Nintendo finished the day at -3.96%, Sony at -7.31%, Koei at -5.41%, Capcom at -6.68%, Konami at -6.76%, Sega at -6.74%, Square Enix at -5.79%, and Nipon Ichi at a whopping -17.58%.

"I've been following ~50 Japanese game stocks for over 10 years now," wrote Toto on Twitter. "Today was the worst day I can remember."

Stock markets have been affected globally in the wake of growing fears over the impact of the coronavirus. Today US shares were briefly suspended when sharp falls led to an automatic halt in buying and selling stocks.Crude oil has also experienced a sharp drop following a row between Russia and Saudi Arabia.

The COVID-19 virus has caused concern throughout the games industry. Most recently Emerald City Comic-Con, which takes place in Seattle, was moved to summer due to coronavirus cases in the city.

Other events such as GDC 2020, Eve Fanfest, and various eSports events have been postponed or canceled. Some developers also decided to skip Pax East over coronavirus concerns.