It’s a sad day for gamers all around the globe. After running on fumes for a couple of years, the Entertainment Software Association has officially announced the cancelation of their annual gaming expo, E3.
For more than two decades, E3 was the go-to festival for players and gaming companies alike to interact and showcase their latest projects. Following a year of audiences experiencing awesome games and giving their verdict on social media, E3 was the perfect retreat to celebrate the industry itself, while basking in the glory of what’s to come.
I can’t rightly remember the number of times I leaped up in joy watching the world premiere of a new game by Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo, or any of the other major third-party developers like Ubisoft and Electronic Arts. And now, as much as it hurts to admit out loud, it seems that 2023 is officially marking the retirement of E3.
Is E3 canceled for good?
After the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted plans for E3’s return in 2020, and subsequent years brought about other hurdles in the way, we were almost waiting on this announcement without knowing it. After all, Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest hasn’t been all that subtle about its aspirations to take E3’s place, and it seems the Game Awards host is finally getting his wish.
According to a report by The Washington Post, further verified by the Entertainment Software Association itself, E3 is retiring for good and won’t be back in 2024.
Addressing this regretful, if inevitable development, the company’s SEO Stanley Pierre-Louis released the following statement.
“We know the entire industry, players and creators alike have a lot of passion for E3. We share that passion. We know it’s difficult to say goodbye to such a beloved event, but it’s the right thing to do given the new opportunities our industry has to reach fans and partners.”
Pierre-Louis further explained that the advent of other popular platforms like Twitch with their streaming tools has contributed to E3 becoming defunct as a business model. Sony’s infamous decision to forego the 2019 showcase was only one of the developments that cast a long shadow over the expo’s prospects. Now, with repeated State of Play streams, not to mention Microsoft’s own conjoined showcase with Bethesda, it seems clear that there won’t be a place for E3 in the ensemble going forward.
Besides, E3 required a lot of coordination on an industry-wide level, so with the studios’ hectic schedules these days to get games out in time, we understand where many of these companies are coming from.
Will E3 ever be resurrected? It’s highly unlikely, but we’ve been surprised by such developments before.