COVID-19 hiatus

On 17 March 2020, Critical Role announced that it was suspending all live broadcasts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Marisha Ray later clarified on Twitter that they did not wish to put any unnecessary stress on the crew, nor did they want to affect the overall experience of the show best achieved sitting and playing together at a table, so there were no plans to stream the campaign via Skype, Zoom, or other online venues. The last broadcast of Critical Role before the hiatus was 12 March 2020, on the five-year anniversary of the show.

On 12 June 2020, Critical Role announced that they were actively developing plans for their return in accordance with local guidelines. On 2 July 2020, they returned to broadcasting Critical Role in a pre-recorded format. A socially distant version of Talks Machina began airing bi-weekly on 15 September, 2020.

The company continued to produce limited content during the hiatus, including: Of these, Narrative Telephone, AWNP:Unplugged, Yee-Haw Off the Ranch, and Mighty Vibes continued at least briefly past the resumption of the live stream.
 * Narrative Telephone
 * AWNP Unplugged
 * Yee-Haw Off the Ranch
 * Explorer's Guide to Wildemount Q&A and Fireside Chat with Matthew Mercer
 * Mighty Vibes (aired 23 April, 21 May, and 10 July 2020)
 * CR Guide (aired 9 June 2020)