Kotaku
What? Say it isn't so! How else will the Kotaku staff get completely hammered on Sony's dime? Where will sweaty fanboys get their ham-hands on Bumpy Trot mini-harmonicas? What will become of the booth babe short-shorts? Won't someone please think of the short-shorts?!
Unfortunately for gaming and short-shorts fans, both Gamespot and Next-Gen are reporting that industry mega event E3, held every May at the L.A. County Convention Center, will be seeing some major changes. Gamespot indicates that the expo will shrink in the number of attendees, from the current 60,000 plus visitors to somewhere in the mere hundreds and move out of the LACCC. Next-Gen is being a bit more alarmist, writing that the event is effectively cancelled.
The two outlets cite their sources as indicating that major publishers have been in talks with the ESA, discussing alternate format options for the show or simply pulling out altogether to focus on company sponsored events.
The convention has long been a enthusiast media frenzy and many games get lost in the crush. Smaller, media focused events may give product more opportunity to shine. But one of the biggest factors seems to be the almighty dollar. From Gamespot:
One reason behind the downsizing of the show can be attributed to the dollar cost of the event to exhibitors, including the demands on companies to assign large numbers of staff to focus on the show, expenses associated with travel to the show, and the added expense to polish game builds and demos to be shown to attendees.
If you've ever been to E3, you might have been shocked to see the extravagant booth displays, the huge numbers of staff on hand, and the exhorbitant spending on useless schwag. If you've REALLY been to E3, you'd also be amazed at the huge parties, drowning in top shelf alcohol and delicious catered food. And if you've ever covered E3 from a press perspective, you know it's quite hellish on your body and soul.
At this point, this is still well-informed speculation, but appears to most likely be true. The ESA will be issuing a statement tomorrow to fill us in on the fun-shattering details. Stay tuned.
ESA to downsize E3? [Gamespot]
EXCLUSIVE: E3 FINISHED [Next-Gen.biz]
