E3 isn’t dead, we’ll call it the Summer Games Festival now

Η Electronic Entertainment Expo e 3 As we all know, for many years it has been the most anticipated event of the year for gamers and developers. In fact, we are talking about a very old enterprise with a history of more than two decades. E3 was the place to see the biggest names in the industry, and all the new games that are bound to keep you busy for the next year and beyond. It had memes, surprises, announcements, and hype that carried over from the soulful, packed press conference rooms to the online viewing communities. Even for those of us on the other side of the Atlantic, E3 made for a sweet night, with the inevitable tiredness and annoyance somehow making the experience – at least in my eyes – even better!

Personally, I have countless memories of E3, which I watched non-stop for many years. I’ll never forget the chaos of Expo 2013, as the gaming community tried to push Microsoft into reversing the Xbox One’s restrictive policies on used games. Not even when Hideo Kojima burst onto the scene in 2016, following his much-discussed divorce from Konami, characteristically saying “I’m back!” Then he showed the first trailer for Death Stranding, which we immediately began analyzing frame by frame for hours. In fact, all this while ago, in the same show, Kratos stepped out of the shadows, with Santa Monica bringing a reboot of the beloved franchise to the world for the first time. From Reggie’s “My Body is Ready” to the launch of Wii Fit in 2007 to Konami’s legendary press conference at E3 2010, there are truly countless moments on the show that are part of gaming history.

Despite the passion of the gaming community, E3 has faced many challenges in recent years. And that downward spiral is not something that was caused by the pandemic that forced the complete cancellation of E3 2020 and E3 2022. I especially remember E3 2019, which I was fortunate enough to attend in person. While there was a pulse, it seemed muted, with many companies having a thin presence, Microsoft having its booth elsewhere, and PlayStation missing entirely.

It may have all started with the first Nintendo Direct in 2011, but one thing is for sure: the pandemic didn’t start, but instead greatly accelerated what seemed like a long time to come. In just three years, E3 had lost its relevance and attractiveness to many publishers and developers, who preferred to stage their own digital events throughout the year, rather than compete for attention at an exposé that required a lot of expense. Even today, E3 2023 has been officially canceled by the organizers, who cited the lack of interest and support from the industry as the main reason.

But does this mean that E3 is dead? not exactly. It’s clear that even after this latest development, E3 shows that it has lost ground as the ultimate gaming event. But actually this summer too there will usually be a celebration of the hobby we love. There will be what most of us think of as “E3”. You probably know where I’m going with this idea: the Summer Games Festival.

It is a global platform that unites the entire industry for a series of events, shows, announcements and breaking news for the masses. It’s a digital initiative started by Geoff Keighley, veteran journalist and presenter of The Game Awards, who is now – for better or worse – behind every major gaming event (The Game Awards, Gamescom, Summer Game Fest). Summer Game Fest debuted in 2020 in response to the pandemic and the absence of E3, and it was a huge hit. This year he’s been called upon to once again fill the same need, even if the failure of E3 seems somewhat related to his rise, at least in the eyes of the more cunning. For example, after yesterday’s news, Jeff said:

E3 means a lot to me and to many of you. Four years ago, I realized E3 wasn’t evolving because it needed to compete in a global digital world. So we started creating the next step.

I’m 15 years old at the first ever E3 conference back in 1995.

E3 means a lot to me, and to a lot of you, too.

Four years ago, I realized E3 wasn’t evolving because it needed to compete in a global digital world. So we started building what’s next. see in @employee June 8th. pic.twitter.com/wSZqpz3wjY

– Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) March 30, 2023

In any case. Whatever happens behind the scenes, Summer Game Fest returns on June 8th to become the ultimate summer gaming event. It will all start with a stunning presentation hosted by Keighley himself, with a live stream from the YouTube Theater in Los Angeles. The show will include world premieres, play reveals, musical performances, special guests, and other surprises.

Yes, obviously the Summer Games Festival is also a different kind of event that leans more towards the digital format. It’s also more flexible than E3, allowing each participating company to choose their own date and format for their presentation. The format isn’t as compressed as the fully recurring press conference schedule we saw once in one night at E3, but let’s not laugh, with the way marketing has evolved, this may be something we’ll never see again. On the other hand, Summer Game Fest offers Geoff’s opening show which is a plus that E3 didn’t have. Obviously, there are pros and cons to both approaches.

Find out what’s next in video games when @employee Go straight!

🔹 Thursday, June 8, noon PT / 3 p.m. ET
🔹 Free live broadcast from @employee pic.twitter.com/cxpZlQk0fq

summergamefest March 30, 2023

Where do we end up? E3 2023 may have been cancelled, but I think its spirit lives on at Summer Game Fest. Whether or not it will evolve into a worthy successor or perhaps something even better remains to be seen. This year will certainly be very important. For those watching from home, the experience is different, yet similar. For those traveling to LA and its fairgrounds, it remains to be seen if the Summer Games Festival will also have physical booth space, as Jeff himself has alluded to.

However, the schedule is already starting to fill up, with Xbox already announcing a double show on June 11, Geoff’s special on the 8th, Ubisoft’s show on June 12, and CD Projekt’s show about the future of Cyberpunk. So, for whatever summer of gaming has in store for you this year, whether it’s called E3 or Summer Game Fest, all you have to do is stay tuned on Unboxholics.

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