The discontinuation of E3 is understandable in the modern gaming climate, yet remains a major loss for the video game industry.
E3, short for Electronic Entertainment Expo, was a major trade event devoted to the video game industry led by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). Each year, the event hosted game developers and publishers who held press conferences to reveal new titles and other products, many of which were made available to try on the show floor.
After the show’s inception in 1995, the event – which was often hosted in the Los Angeles Convention Center – became a hallmark of the gaming industry, quickly growing into a large celebration of all things gaming. The show’s internal purpose may have been centred around business, but for gaming fans, it was an exciting time of year in which fun new titles would be revealed and celebrated.
Fans wouldn’t need to head to Los Angeles to partake in the excitement, with press conferences and announcements being broadcast to the world. Attendees would often film game demos on the show floor and publish footage online, giving excited fans more opportunities to check out the latest software.
Whenever E3 would roll around, it was a good time to be a gamer; yet, like all good things, it would eventually come to an end.
The ESA announced in December 2023 that they would be permanently discontinuing E3. To those following the event’s history, this shouldn’t come as a surprise: the event had already been experiencing a downfall for several years.
The number of exhibitors that pulled out of E3 in its final years was one such indicator. E3 held 209 exhibitors in 2019, a substantial decrease from the 293 exhibitors it hosted two years prior. It certainly didn’t help that Sony, the company responsible for PlayStation, was one of the companies who declined to attend. PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo are often considered gaming’s “big three,” and losing one of these brands resulted in a lot less eyes on the event.
The future of E3 was already unstable, and the cancellation of E3 2020 due to the pandemic exacerbated the event’s problems. This was the first time the event had ever been cancelled, and it would prove abysmal for the future of E3.
E3 would make an awkward return the following year, with E3 2021 taking place as a fully virtual event. Because of the pandemic, there was no show floor and no in-person conferences. Essentially, the event – rebranded as the “Electronic Entertainment Experience” – was a few days’ worth of various companies uploading digital showcases on YouTube. It was still fun, but without the event’s physical presence, it lost a lot of its purpose.
Since then, both E3’s 2022 and 2023 events were cancelled before the ESA’s eventual announcement that the show would not return. The case of E3 2023 is especially significant because its cancellation was due to the influx of companies pulling out, including the remaining members of the “big three.” After all, without video game companies, there is no E3.
From the companies’ perspective, the cancellation of E3 makes complete sense. Starting with Nintendo’s introduction of the live-streamed video game showcase “Nintendo Direct” in 2011, companies realised that there was no need to put together elaborate physical showcases every June.
Since 2013, Nintendo broadcasted Nintendo Directs for E3 in lieu of traditional conferences, but they still made a prominent appearance on the show floor and smaller complementary live events. Over time, Nintendo Directs would revolutionise the way video games are revealed, with other companies starting to stream their own digital showcases at various points across the year.
This is an incredibly effective strategy. Through these events, companies could stream pre-recorded videos to their fans rather than enduring their often cringey live conferences. They also wouldn’t need their news to compete with the news releases from other companies over the week of E3; rather, they could space out their showcases across the year so they each have time in the spotlight. Better yet, they wouldn’t need to fund expensive show floor displays if everything was broadcast virtually.
You can’t blame these companies for the death of E3. They found a strategy that works better in just about every way. Unfortunately, that strategy means that events like E3 no longer have a reason to exist.
Yet, from a fan’s perspective, the loss of E3 feels like a major blow. There was something magical about a week every year devoted to gaming. It felt like a huge celebration where fans of various brands and franchises could come together and get excited about new announcements. While there was often conversation about which company “won” each year’s E3, it was still a moment where the tiresome console wars weren’t the main focus of the discussion. It seemed that everybody, regardless of their console of choice, had something to look forward to.
Of course, there was more than just the press conferences. Videos from the show floor as well as other small events such as Nintendo Treehouse – which saw Nintendo representatives play games that had been revealed in the preceding Direct – contributed to the excitement of the week. It was more than a single showcase; every day over the week of E3 there would be new information or footage to wake up to.
There’s even something special to be said about those cringey moments on stage. As embarrassing as they were, they somehow contributed to the magic of E3 and garnered further discussion from fans.
The week of E3 was magical, but there’s simply no need for it anymore. While E3’s discontinuation makes sense from a business standpoint, it will likely leave a void for many of the gamers who looked forward to the event each year.
E3’s purpose might live on through digital showcases and livestreams, but it’s difficult to see its discontinuation as anything but a loss for the excitement and togetherness of the video game industry. Every year, E3 would be an exciting time to be a gamer, and it will most certainly be missed.
