By now, it’s no secret that E3 2023 has been confirmed as cancelled, but in the short hours since the announcement, new details have emerged.
After the biggest E3 2023 announcement of the year came just yesterday afternoon, there’s another development in information surrounding the cancellation of the event. Reedpop and ESA (Entertainment Software Association) have banded together to release some statements on why the huge event was cancelled. Reedpop is the parent company of GamesIndustry.biz, and they’ve kindly teamed up to pull the curtain open on what they believe is the reason for the huge event’s demise. Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo (commonly referred to as the ‘Big Three‘) pulling out didn’t help matters, it turns out.
ESA President and CEO Stanley Pierre-Louis sat down with GamesIndustry.biz and answered a myriad of questions regarding E3 2023 and whether the show is expected to return. Pierre-Louis said, “First, several companies have reported that the timeline for game development has been altered since the start of the COVID pandemic. Second, economic headwinds have caused several companies to reassess how they invest in large marketing events. And third, companies are starting to experiment with how to find the right balance between in-person events and digital marketing opportunities,” as “challenges that proved too large to surmount” for E3 2023.
On whether there was a demand for the event, E3 2023, Pierre-Louis said, “We did our best to reshape that, but, in the end, companies make individual business and marketing decisions about what works. It’s an evolving landscape, and we want to ensure we are meeting those needs.” Pierre-Louis also said, “What we want to make sure we are doing is providing a platform that works for the needs of the industry,” in regards to a future after the E3 2023 cancellation, cueing in on the notion “It’s a matter of finding the right pitch – and I mean that in the sound way – for the needs that are evolving.”
Overall, Stanley Pierre-Louis said it best “I’m giving very general comments about what I am seeing, and much of what I am talking about really is what we are seeing in the news, and companies are reporting this in very public ways. Each company is in a different position,” and in regards to whether E3 will return for 2024, he gave a non-committal response with “We’re certainly going to be listening and ensuring whatever we want to offer meets those needs and at that time, we will have more news to share.”
Although E3 2023 has been sadly cancelled, the Summer Game Fest for 2023 is still happening, and fans will have that event to look forward to in the Summer of 2023. The whole interview with the ESA President can be found over on GamesIndustry.biz.
