2020 was a big year, to say the least. We’ve seen some massive changes thanks to this worldwide health pandemic outbreak. While the world attempted to figure out how to avoid catching along with spreading this virus to others, all the in-person events that were planned out throughout 2020 were completely scrapped. Conventions, concerts, any kind of in-person event where you would meet with friends or colleagues was simply not a thing last year and it’s likely going to be that way this year as well.
One of those big events for the video game industry that you all are likely aware of is E3. This is a convention that features different video game-related companies attending the show and offering the press a look at what’s to come in the future for the video game industry. We’ve seen software reveals to big hardware announcements like the latest video game consoles.
Since those early years of the E3 convention, we’ve seen several changes to the format. For instance we seen bigger media press conference events and the floor became crowded with a mix of press and consumers alike rather than being a media only expo. Likewise, both Nintendo and Sony stepped away from their traditional E3 conferences to offer their online stream presentations. With E3 2020 being canceled due to the virus pandemic, we saw most of these companies make up their own online streaming event to showcase what they have in the works.
A new city document VGC has discovered makes note that the E3 2021 event is canceled for a live-event but there are plans for broadcast options and potential to bring out a 2022 & 2023 license. Unfortunately for ESA, E3 2021 might be more of a bust as it would seem these various companies such as Ubisoft, Microsoft, and Sony were able to get away with streaming their own media events online for consumers without having to pay large fees to produce an on-stage show for E3. It will certainly be interesting to see if there’s much of a big company presence for the E3 event showcase this year or if we’ll continue to see the likes of Sony’s State of Play or Ubisoft Forward thrive this year as well.
Source: VGC
