E3 2023 has been cancelled, organizers of the Entertainment Software Association said on Thursday after major publishers such as Ubisoft, Sega and Tencent refused. These companies join console makers Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony, who have previously confirmed they will not be attending E3 this year.
On Tuesday, IGN reported that major publishers had pulled out of the event, with others questioning their participation in the show. On Thursday, IGN reported that E3 organizers reportedly told attendees that E3 2023 “simply did not generate the sustained interest needed to conduct it in a way that demonstrates the size, power and impact on the industry».
This year, E3 was announced as a return to the Los Angeles Convention Center for the show’s first in-person event since 2019. ESA has engaged ReedPop, the company that organizes PAX, Star Wars Celebration and other fan-oriented events, to host E3 2023. The plan was to bring together a gathering of publishers, developers, media and buyers. When it was announced in July 2022, ReedPop promised that “E3 2023 will be recognizably epic – a return to form that honors what has always worked and changes what hasn’t.».
A competing event, Summer Game Fest, hosted by Geoff Keighley, will serve as an alternative for game publishers and developers to showcase their projects in June. In the same month, Microsoft and Ubisoft will be hosting their own digital events to coincide with the dates of Summer Game Fest (June 8-10) and the canceled E3 (June 11-16).
