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E3, one of the world’s biggest video game shows, has closed permanently, organizers said Tuesday, ending what was once an annual event for gamers and creators after struggling for many years to remain relevant in a fast-moving business.
“After more than two decades of E3, each one better than the last, the time has come to say goodbye,” announced his team, the nonprofit Entertainment Software Association, in his website. “Thanks for the memories,” he said, adding, “GGWP,” or good game, well played.
The Electronic Entertainment Expo, known as E3, has been held annually in Los Angeles since 1995, except when it was canceled during the pandemic. This is one of the most popular places where game makers show off their creations to fans before they go on sale, sometimes with spectacular displays. Celebrities like Eminem and Rihanna were featured.
E3 was originally aimed at journalists and business professionals. But the convention attracted so many fans that the organizers reduced it to an invitation-only meeting in 2007. It still attracted 50,000 business representatives every June.
E3 later faced competition from special events such as Comic-Con, the Penny Arcade Expo and MineCon which grew in popularity. It also lost partners, including Nintendo and Sony, which reduced their presence and decided to introduce new games elsewhere.
The habits of players have also changed. As physical games, with discs in boxes, waned in popularity, portable games emerged, just got PC games in revenue in 2016. The game industry changed to digital distribution.
During the pandemic, the organizers canceled E3 in 2020 and rescheduled it to 2021. It was canceled again in 2022 and has not been rescheduled. The permanent cancellation of E3 was previously reported by the Washington Post.
After announcing the end of E3, the Entertainment Software Association said the above social media remained “focused on advising ESA companies and investors.”