The Electronic Entertainment Expo (or E3 for short) is the single largest event in the video game industry and as such is also the battleground for big dogs like Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft. As one prominent video game journalist put it “[E3] is a giant machine run by crazy people.” Journalists get their scoops and coverage while the PR guys get to promote and generate buzz, but generally speaking it’s a huge pain for everyone involved. Not to mention that a hot, crowded, noisy and sometimes smelly convention hall isn’t exactly an ideal environment to experience a new game. Because of this and a variety of other factors small titles often get lost in the shuffle or simply buried under they hype of far bigger (but not necessarily better) announcements.
I also find myself wondering what E3 is really supposed to be all about. Unlike say GDC which serves as a chance for developers and enthusiasts from all over the world to meet face-to-face, hang out and tell stories E3 is a lot of flash-and-trash advertising mixed with shady backroom business deals. There’s also a fair amount of politicking and favoritism which can lead to a lot of bad blood and prissiness all around. I’m not even sure if it’s so beneficial for your average gamer either considering the costs involved to attend the event mixed with the fact that anything of even remote interest is going to have massive crowd or long line to contend with unless you’re an insider.
Sufficed to say I think you can see a lot more of E3 from the convenience of your home than the people who go through all the effort to be there in person, which finally brings me to the main point of this particular blog post. We live in an age where digit conferencing is common place and the transmission of large amounts of detailed information can be done with the simple push of a button. So, do we really need this antiquated E3 anymore? And if so then why?
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