TECH NEWS – The Electronic Software Association has officially confirmed that the plans for E3 2023 have been cancelled – due to a lack of sustained interest!

We had to get this: the Electronic Software Association has officially cancelled E3 2023! True, speculation has been mounting for weeks that the event would not go ahead. The event has long been considered the biggest industry event of the year. All the way back to the first congress in 1995. However, the COVID-19 epidemic that shut down in-person events, the increased focus on digital events and dissatisfaction with ESA combined to derail E3.

In March 2022, ESA formally announced the cancellation of E3 2022, saying it was due to the ongoing health risks associated with COVID-19.

ESA then announced that E3 would return in 2023. And in the form of a “renewed showcase” combining industry events and fan engagement. Later that year, it was confirmed that the in-person convention and online digital event featuring partner presentations, which will take place at the Los Angeles Convention Center from 13-16 June, will continue.

ESA has now cancelled all previous plans for E3 2023. There will no longer be an in-person event, nor will there be an online event. In a public statement, organiser ReedPop explained the cancellation by saying it was “the right thing to do for the industry and E3”. The programme was said to have failed to generate enough interest to hold an event of the size and scope expected.

Specifically, ReedPop said that interested partners were unable to provide playable demos. “Resource challenges” made attending E3 too much of an obstacle. Thus, ReedPop says it could not have provided the showcase that “you deserve and have come to expect from ReedPop’s previous events”. ReedPop will host several conventions annually, including C2E2, EGX and Emerald City Comic Con.

It should be made clear that although E3’s digital plans are cancelled, that doesn’t mean that partners and other organisations won’t continue with their own events.

Summer Game Fest confirmed its digital plans today. Partners already include 2K, Activision, Bandai Namco, Capcom, EA, Epic Games, Sega, PlayStation, Square Enix, Warner Bros. and Xbox.

Unfortunately, it seems that the industry has moved beyond E3 and what the convention had to offer. However, ESA is not yet ready to declare E3 entirely over. Both ESA and ReedPop have confirmed that they will continue to work together on “future E3 events”. This is not an official announcement about E3 2024. But it is clear that efforts are already underway to bring the event back next year.

Source: IGN