I remember growing up looking forward to this expo every year. It feels like a piece of history is being lost with it.

  • InquisitiveApathy@lemm.eeEnglish
    57·
    11 months ago

    As a video game obsessed teen in the mid 2000’s it used to be the most exciting event of the year. It was where you learned about everything that was happening in the industry.

    It’s been a shadow of its former self for a long time though so as sad as it is to see it go, I think it was time to move on once everyone and their mother and grandmother started being perpetually online.

  • Magician [he/him, they/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    28·
    11 months ago

    I preferred E3 to the hyper individualist online things like the Nintendo Direct. It seemed like more of an even playing field where you could learn about general trends and games instead of having curated slop.

    I dunno, I liked seeing the games and companies competing with each other in a shared space instead of these echo chambers that remind me of gamefaqs forums.

      • HiImThomasPynchon [des/pair, it/its]@hexbear.netEnglish
        2·
        11 months ago

        I remember watching the Screwattack news team getting smaller and smaller because they kept getting e3 invites and eventually they just moved production into a hotel room because it was easier to do it there.

        I feel like they’ve probably all had sex scandals in the intervening years, but I didn’t know that at the time.

  • charly4994 [she/her, comrade/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    21·
    11 months ago

    My memories of E3 are few since I never particularly cared, but when I was like 19 and going to college for something I never finished, I had a bunch of friends that were super hype for it and we were all planning on going out to it in like 2010, not only to go to the con, but to also try to network since we all wanted a job in the games industry. Some other students that were close to graduating gave out some tips on how to approach some bigger names at the event. The only thing that still sticks out to me is how we were told to buy a pack of cigarettes, and go to the smoking sections and hang out to chat up studio people and even if we didn’t actually smoke, we should have a lit cigarette in our mouths. Apparently this worked for a number of other people at the school.

  • axont [she/her, comrade/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    18·
    11 months ago

    Did any companies ever come out ahead from E3? I guess the announcement of the Wii was a big deal that caused a bug uproar.

    Nowadays all I remember are the very embarrassing things. Those moments make me feel warm inside. I can’t imagine companies were very excited knowing one of them would be made into the industry laughingstock for that year

    One million troops, woooow. Giant enemy crab. Intense staring guy at the Konami panel. My body is ready. It’s spooooky.

  • CrushKillDestroySwag@hexbear.netEnglish
    14·
    11 months ago

    This sucks. E3 has been replaced in every major company’s marketing budget by a “direct” where they can get a lot more attention focused onto themselves and have total control over the narrative that gets made of it, and while they might have maybe found a way to evolve with the times by focusing on smaller publishers, E3 caught COVID and died like Stan fukken Chera.

    That said: PAX is basically “the better E3” and is still ongoing, so it’s not all bad.

    • booty [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
      1·
      11 months ago

      That said: PAX is basically “the better E3” and is still ongoing, so it’s not all bad.

      They cancelled the only PAX that was close enough for me to attend, though. :(

    • Tankiedesantski [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
      3·
      11 months ago

      Yeah I seem to recall that E3 has died once in the past and was resurrected with juche Necromancy? Maybe its previous “death” was just a downsizing.

    • blashork [she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
      2·
      11 months ago

      I like some of the deeply funny moments it brought. Like the time nintendo execs tried to do wii music stuff on stage and it was a fucking hilarious mess. Or the god awful kinect showcases. And all of the poorly coordinated demos. And the time the activision guy was absolutely zooted to shit on stage and gave the most contemptuous display I have ever seen.

      And that’s just what I remember from jim stephanie sterling’s highlight reel. People shitting themselves in line, and losing attendee data to hackers. Mr. caffeine for gods sake.

      Every iota of joy it has ever brought me was at the expanse of the people running it and going to it. Good fucking riddance.