E3 Gaming Expo Comes To An End

It an end of an era as the ESA (Entertainment Software Association) has decided to discontinue the E3 Gaming Expo, which has been the gaming industry’s leading expo for the past two decades. This decision follows the ESA's announcement of the cancellation of the E3 show for 2023, subsequent to major gaming companies like Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo withdrawing from the event.

“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,” stated Stanley Pierre-Louis, CEO of the ESA, the non-profit trade organization that managed E3, in an interview with The Washington Post.

Pierre-Louis acknowledged that the event's demise is primarily due to game developers and publishers increasingly distancing themselves from the expo. They are now focusing on less expensive showcases that target fans directly, as opposed to the industry insiders and journalists who were the main focus of E3.

The decline of E3 commenced with the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, which led to the cancellation of in-person events like E3. This resulted in brands such as Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft presenting their games and consoles through their own online events. This shift initiated a series of online showcases, enabling AAA games to be directly presented to consumers.

The last in-person E3 event took place in 2019. In 2021, E3 returned as a digital event, though it was initially scheduled to resume as an in-person event in 2023. However, this was subsequently cancelled.