E3, the Formerly Prominent Gaming Event, Faces Permanent Cancellation
E3, once the biggest annual show in the video game industry where developers showed off their latest games to the public, has been canceled permanently. Over the past few years, several editions of E3 have been canceled, first due to the COVID-19 pandemic and then due to a lack of commitment from developers and major publishers such as Sony, which decided to hold its own events such as the PlayStation Showcase instead.
Stanley Pierre-Louis, CEO of the Entertainment Software Association, the organization responsible for E3, said in a statement to the Washington Post: “We know it’s hard to say goodbye to such a beloved event, but it’s the right thing to do given the industry’s new opportunities to reach out to fans and partners. “
In addition, the official E3 account on X (formerly Twitter) also bid farewell to fans.
pic.twitter.com/y6dtVkBvNI— E3 (@E3) December 12, 2023
The main reason for the shutdown is that E3 is no longer on the radar of major publishers like Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft. Most publishers now have large online shows that players can watch live. Also, shows like E3 can generally be expensive for publishers to attend, especially when there are a lot of attendees, the booths are manageable, and they have to fly people like editors to attend the same to get the word out.
Also, it should be noted that the last in-person E3 took place in 2019. And since then, only one edition of E3 has been organized, that too online. All versions after that had to be cancelled. But now it’s clear that the show won’t be coming back as it has been permanently put on hold.
