No more E3! The legendary trade fair has announced its definitive end after problematic years
What had been creeping up on us has now been confirmed: E3, once the flagship of the video games industry and the most important meeting place for media and developers, is now officially history. After more than two decades, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) has decided to end the show, as Stanley Pierre-Louis, President and CEO of the ESA, confirmed
– E3 (@E3) December 12, 2023
E3 was launched in 1995 in response to the lack of attention the games industry was receiving at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Over the years, it developed into the most important annual gaming event, where not only legendary titles were presented to the public for the first time, but also new consoles such as the Wii, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 saw the light of day.
The reasons for the end of E3
E3 had already been struggling with difficult conditions for several years, with new competitors in particular giving the former giant a hard time.
In 2011, Nintendo had already initiated the change with its Direct format, a crisp online presentation. The trend intensified in 2018 when Sony PlayStation left the show and other companies followed suit. Geoff Keighley, a former E3 employee, has set his own tone with events such as the Summer Game Fest and the Game Awards.
It has been clear since the coronavirus pandemic at the latest: the industry is undergoing a radical change. The trend is moving towards online events such as the Xbox Games Showcase or Ubisoft Forward, where hundreds of thousands of people regularly watch at the same time and publishers don’t have to share the spotlight with others
Now it’s up to you: The end of E3 marks the end of an important chapter in the history of the games industry. What do you think about the end? Will you miss the trade fair feeling or do the publishers’ well-planned online events appeal to you more anyway? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
