e3
Latest
Square Enix, Bandai Namco and Sega confirmed for this year's virtual E3
Square Enix, Bandai Namco and and Sega are will all participate in this year's virtual E3 event, which begins on June 12th.
Microsoft and Nintendo sign up for a free, all-digital E3
This year's event runs from June 12th to 15th, and Sony probably won't be involved.
E3 2021 organizers confirm the all-digital event will be '100 percent free'
E3 2021 will be '100 percent free' according to its organizers, with no paywalled content.
E3 will return in 2021, likely as an all-digital event
The ESA is reportedly forging ahead with plans for a digital-only E3 2021.
A year of tech events without tech events
Apple’s big press events and its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) wield arguably even more influence on the world of tech.
Superbrothers' first game in nine years takes you to outer space
Superbrothers just unveiled its first game since 'Sword & Sworcery EP' was released in 2011.
Ubisoft's 'E3-style' showcase will stream July 12th
With E3 cancelled this year, French publisher Ubisoft will host a digital showcase on July 12th at 3PM ET to show off its latest games.
Microsoft to slowly reveal Xbox Series X details through a monthly video series
E3 is cancelled, so Microsoft will reveal more details about its upcoming Xbox Series X console via monthly updates.
E3's digital replacement is in the hands of games companies
The glitzy annual show will still be going ahead in spirit but there won’t be one central place to tune into to catch everything that’s going on
E3 will return June 15th, 2021
The Entertainment Software Association may have cancelled E3 2020 due to COVID-19, but it's still committed to holding an event next year. The organization has announced that E3 will return between June 15th and June 17th, 2021. It characterized the future expo as a "reimagined" event, although that's the language it used for its since-scrapped 2020 gathering. It won't be surprising if the 2021 event is really a look at what you might have seen this year, just with a different mix of games.
The Xbox E3 event will still happen, just online
E3, the most high-profile conference in the multibillion-dollar business of video games, has been canceled this year, but that doesn't mean the industry is going to stop altogether. Instead of hosting a massive stage show at the Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles this summer, the Xbox team is moving the conference online.
E3 2020 is officially canceled
E3 won't be happening this year. Today, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) confirmed that the annual show -- known for its glitzy press conferences and blockbuster video game reveals -- won't be going ahead. The decision confirms reporting by Ars Technica and Bloomberg yesterday. The cancellation, unsurprisingly, is due to coronavirus fears. E3 is an almost week-long event that consumes Los Angeles and attracts attendees from all over the globe, so the health risks were substantial.
Coronavirus panic could spell the end for tech conventions
You know the scene: A man in a crisp suit stands on a dark, sterile stage at the head of a packed auditorium, surrounded by sleek screens. It's the year 2045 or 2060 or 3000, and the presenter delivers a sanctimonious speech about progress and humanity before revealing a product that will change the world. The audience goes wild. They get free, instant access to whatever piece of technology was just announced. And then, predictably, that gadget contributes to society's ultimate undoing. It's a common scene in modern sci-fi dramas, but for a story set in the future, it's dead wrong. Big, in-person tech conferences may be a staple of the industry today, but as global internet infrastructure takes root and live streams become ubiquitous, these shows will fall by the wayside. They'll become a symbol of a past era, that time when society was awkwardly transitioning from physical interactions to digital experiences.
E3 2020 registration opens February 15 at 11AM ET
If you're determined to see games for next-gen consoles months in advance, your opportunity might be close at hand. The ESA is opening registration for E3 2020 through the E3 website on February 15th at 11AM Eastern. You'll have to pay $165 to visit the Los Angeles Convention Center on June 10th and 11th if you're part of the general public (only the industry and press get in on June 9th), but the ESA is promising perks that include a new "floor experience" where you'll see conversations with creators.
Sony is skipping E3 again in 2020
Last year Sony pulled a no-show at E3, and the company has announced it will sit out the 2020 event too. In a statement to GamesIndustry.biz, the folks behind PlayStation explained that "After thorough evaluation SIE has decided not to participate in E3 2020. We have great respect for the ESA as an organization, but we do not feel the vision of E3 2020 is the right venue for what we are focused on this year. "We will build upon our global events strategy in 2020 by participating in hundreds of consumer events across the globe. Our focus is on making sure fans feel part of the PlayStation family and have access to play their favorite content. We have a fantastic line up of titles coming to PlayStation 4, and with the upcoming launch of PlayStation 5, we are truly looking forward to a year of celebration with our fans." In 2018 Sony tried out a "different approach" for its E3 press conference while diving into games like Death Stranding, but it appears that even the prospect of launching its PlayStation 5 later this year won't bring it back to the show in an official sense. Of course, as we observed last year, Sony's presence still loomed large over the E3 show floor via sales and third party unveilings, and it seems likely the same thing will happen in 2020. For its part, Microsoft took the wraps off of Xbox Series X at The Game Awards, and it remains to be seen how much focus it will put on E3 as opposed to its own fan-centric events. Update (8:37 PM ET): The ESA (the organization behind E3 has responded with a statement of its own, via a spokesperson. E3 is a signature event celebrating the video game industry and showcasing the people, brands, and innovations redefining entertainment loved by billions of people around the world. E3 2020 will be an exciting, high-energy show featuring new experiences, partners, exhibitor spaces, activations, and programming that will entertain new and veteran attendees alike. Exhibitor interest in our new activations is gaining the attention of brands that view E3 as a key opportunity to connect with video game fans worldwide.
Did AI kill off spam and we just didn’t notice?
I was pwned online recently. My contact information was revealed to the internet by the Entertainment Software Association's leaky exhibitor portal. Luckily, confidential info like my SSN and birthdate were not spilled but I still found myself preparing for the inevitable flood of scams and spam, now that my details were out there for the world to see. But the deluge never came, only a meager handful of Nigerian princes reached my inbox with offers of long lost inheritance. So if internet nefarious scammers have my email address, why isn't my inbox filled with spam? Turns out we have AI to thank for that.
'Doom Eternal' is guns, gore and sophistication
The 2016 remake of Doom reinvigorated the series. It added new gameplay quirks and systems that rewarded your aggression as humanity's savior, the slayer. Depending on how you maneuvered and ended the lives of demons and other threats, you'd pick up health or ammunition. Doom (2016) made you a far more active hunter -- it was not a game where you could hide and wait out your enemies. So when it came to the sequel, Doom Eternal, the challenge was to build on this bold new play style. This has meant a lot of changes aimed at ramping up the urgency and franticness even further.
Elon Musk: 'The Simulation, The Simulation, The Simulation'
A young woman wanted to know how much she needed to beg to take a selfie with him. A young man wanted to know if he could get his CyberPunk 2077 hat autographed. These are the kind of questions people were asking Elon Musk, the founder and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, during a panel at E3 2019. Musk, who was joined by legendary video game designer Todd Howard (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Fallout 4), spent most of the conversation talking about how gaming has influenced his life, his vision for the industry and, of course, "The Simulation." Almost every response from him ignited cheers from the crowd at E3, who were the latest people to witness the Church of Elon Musk at a technology conference.
'Fallout Shelter' is coming to Tesla cars
Elon Musk showed up on stage at E3 Thursday alongside Bethesda Studios executive producer Todd Howard to announce Fallout Shelter will be coming to Tesla vehicles. The wildly popular game is already available on just about every other system imaginable, so a move to Tesla in-car entertainment systems seems about right. It will be joined by Beach Buggy Racing 2, along with previously announced titles including classic Atari games and indie darling Cuphead.
'Wolfenstein: Youngblood' makes me want more co-op shooters
Wolfenstein: Youngblood is definitely a spin-off, not a sequel. It helps explain why the latest game in the reinvented Wolfenstein universe feels and plays so differently. When first revealed, I was intrigued by the idea of making the blunt, gory, Nazi-hunting first-person shooter into a cooperative game. In Youngblood, you work alongside a buddy or AI assistant to unlock doors, ransack storage and cut a swathe through fictional armor-plated soldiers and robots.
