The organisers of E3 are usually not planning to host an official on-line alternative this 12 months in spite of everything, although I don’t suppose that can be a lot of an issue. When the Entertainment Software Association announced E3 2020’s cancellation in March, as a result of ongoing sitch, they did say they had been contemplating arranging an “online experience” to fill in with bulletins and that. Well, now they’ve confirmed that they determined to not. They’ve additionally this week reportedly confirmed dates for the E3 2021, after they do plan to return to sweaty meatspace.
The ESA had mentioned in March that they had been “exploring options with our members to coordinate an online experience to showcase industry announcements and news in June 2020.” Turns out, that didn’t pan out.
“Given the disruption brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, we will not be presenting an online E3 2020 event in June,” the ESA advised cheery RPS fanzine PC Gamer. “Instead, we will be working with exhibitors to promote and showcase individual company announcements, including on www.E3expo.com, in the coming months.”
If you take pleasure in all of the bulletins of E3 week, excellent news: these can all occur anyway, with out something branded ‘E3’. The week of E3 is beneficial as a spotlight for 12 months’s huge bulletins however there’s no purpose many can’t occur with out the ESA’s involvement – and so they possible will.
Electronic Arts, for instance, skipped E3 2019 however nonetheless blasted their bulletins in that week throughout their very own occasion, EA Play; they nonetheless appear to be going forward with one other this 12 months too. Microsoft are planning to placed on their own Xbox digital event. Ubisoft are considering their very own digital occasion too. Devolver Digital’s wacky livestream was by no means a part of E3 within the first place, and they’re continuing this year. (Bethesda aren’t planning a digital alternative, thoughts.) Then you may have people like IGN planning a replacement marketing frenzy with quite a few publishers. I’d count on the business to cluster all their newsblasts collectively as a result of a targeted frenzy will be useful, however so what if it’s named E3 or not?
I do suspect E3 2020’s cancellation may be the ultimate push for a lot of publishers who’ve already began turning away from E3 and operating their very own advertising occasions throughout the 12 months. I don’t suppose E3 will essentially finish, however its function can be diminished. The ESA have already appeared to show the commerce present into extra of a public occasion lately. They had planned to promote 25,000 E3 public passes this 12 months, up from 15,000 in 2019. That won’t sound large however E3’s complete attendance lately has solely been 66-70 thousand.
Still, the ESA added of their assertion to PCG that they “look forward to bringing our industry and community together in 2021 to present a reimagined E3 that will highlight new offerings and thrill our audiences.”
GamesIndustry.biz reported on the weekend that the ESA privately confirmed dates of June 15-17 for E3 2021, although they haven’t but confirmed that publicly. This 12 months was meant to be their huge revamp of the expo, with plans afoot to “reinvigorate the show and, frankly, to shake things up.” They gabbed about having “a large, super fun floor experience that celebrates gaming culture in exciting new ways” together with “surprise guests” and “experiential zones that delight the senses.” It gave the impression of they had been planning to proceed shifting E3 from a commerce present to an increasing number of of a public occasion.
