About a year ago, E3 announced that it would return for an in-person 2023 event. Now, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) announced to its members that E3 2023 has been officially canceled.
IGN reported on the news, stating that two sources confirmed the cancelation, which was sent out via email. The email stated that while E3 “remains a beloved event and brand,” the 2023 version “simply did not garner the sustained interest necessary to execute it in a way that would showcase the size, strength, and impact of our industry.”
The ESA concluded the email by reiterating its commitment to advocacy work, but did not mention if E3 would continue in future years.
The ESA also released a public statement from Kyle Marsden-Kish, Global VP of Gaming, ReedPop:
This was a difficult decision because of all the effort we and our partners put toward making this event happen, but we had to do what’s right for the industry and what’s right for E3. We appreciate and understand that interested companies wouldn’t have playable demos ready and that resourcing challenges made being at E3 this summer an obstacle they couldn’t overcome. For those who did commit to E3 2023, we’re sorry we can’t put on the showcase you deserve and that you’ve come to expect from ReedPop’s event experiences.
The press release also added that ReedPop and the ESA would continue to work together on future E3 events, so it does seem like there is still hope that E3 may continue one day. For now, however, E3’s future seems very bleak.
E3 was originally intended to be held on June 13 through June 16 at the Los Angeles Convention Center and would have been the first in-person E3 event since 2019. Back in 2020, E3 was canceled due to COVID. In 2021, an E3 event was digitally held and then in 2022, E3 was canceled again.
Several publishers had announced that they would not be in attendance leading up to the cancelation, including Xbox, Nintendo, Sony, Sega, Tencent, and Ubisoft.
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Zainah Yousef
Zainah Yousef is the author of The Fallen Age Saga and specializes in gaming, social media advice, and reviews. She's been writing all her life and she probably won't stop anytime soon.
