The Electronic Entertainment Expo, commonly known as E3, has been canceled for this year. The event was canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic, with a virtual ceremony being held in 2021. It was canceled again in 2022 because of the remaining effects of the pandemic, as well as to have an increased focus on the 2023 event. This year’s event, however, was canceled as well.
“This was a difficult decision because of all the effort we and our partners put toward making this event happen, but we had to do what’s right for the industry and what’s right for E3,” Global VP of Gaming of ReedPop Kyle Marsden-Kish said. ReedPop worked with the Electronics Software Association to run the show for this year.
In late March, video game publishers including Ubisoft, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo dropped out of E3. Ubisoft, Nintendo, and Microsoft planned on having alternate events relating to their own brands and consoles, while Sony dropped out over disagreements with the Entertainment Software Association, the runners of the show. Sony previously dropped out of the 2019 event for the same reason.
“We’ve always engaged our members on strategic decisions including those involving E3 to ensure that we take their priorities into account when planning any events or programs. We certainly did that here,” ESA President and CEO Stanley Pierre-Louis said. “We retained the services of ReedPop knowing that about their track record and history in conducting very positive events, but also in collaborating with our members and ensuring that there was onboarding so that ReedPop understood the needs of members and make sure those connections were made before handing over the day-to-day operations.”
With four major publishing companies dropping out of the event, low attendance was expected, becoming the main factor for the cancellation of the event. Competing events such as Summer Game Fest and Gamescomm are still expected to take place in the summer.
“I’m definitely excited for (other events). I don’t know what they’re going to bring to the table what they haven’t brought up already. They’re definitely gonna have some bangers,” Esports Team Captain Treyton Elliot said.