Oh E3, How I Will Miss Thee...
Obviously the news about E3 as we know it being turned into a hotel convention is old, but I decided to share what I will miss about the old E3 and why the event won't be the same.
First of all, losing E3 flat out sucks. I completely understand the math and reasoning behind it, but I will, unlike other journalists, miss the spectacle of it all. I'll miss the half naked failed actresses I never talk to or take photos with. I'll miss the sweaty mass of Walmart stock kids. I'll miss the giant boombox blasting in my ear as I try to get valuable information out of developer. I'll miss the fact that E3, despite its utter excessiveness, was the biggest and most anticipated gaming holiday of the year. Fuck Christmas, E3 deserved it's own yuletide carol.
While I spent the majority of my time at this year's "L.A.-lapalooza" in private meetings checking out some of the best games on the show floor - though I still envy my coworker who got pencilled in for the Gears of War demo - E3 was still...E3. Sure the majority of media coverage was done in meetings or on GameSpot's gigantic live demo stage, and anyone who was anyone didn't do much work on the show floor, but let's face it, what made E3 what it was is the very thing now being stripped away. We can all say it was about the games, and to a certain extent it was, but aren't other events like PAX, GDC, and TGS "about the games" as well? There are somewhat different crowds at those events, but none of them got as much attention as E3. If it weren't for the flashing lights and the CGI trailers everyone rips on after the show and adores during the show, E3 would've been just another gaming event for all these years. Fact of the matter is that E3 was much like a bug zapper: nothing but a fancy glow, but it drew the eyes of and ears of journalists and gamers alike.
Without that glow we'll see the event for what it really is, a place where press and business associates gather to see demos worthy of EB Games' kiosks and maybe the Xbox Live Marketplace. What really makes the demos even newsworthy is the fact that the games aren't out yet, or even close to release. Yet that's what we're playing: game demos.
So while it makes sense financially for just about all the parties involved, E3 will never be the same. In fact I really don't want to call it E3 any more. I think I'll just call it "that convention in LA."
First of all, losing E3 flat out sucks. I completely understand the math and reasoning behind it, but I will, unlike other journalists, miss the spectacle of it all. I'll miss the half naked failed actresses I never talk to or take photos with. I'll miss the sweaty mass of Walmart stock kids. I'll miss the giant boombox blasting in my ear as I try to get valuable information out of developer. I'll miss the fact that E3, despite its utter excessiveness, was the biggest and most anticipated gaming holiday of the year. Fuck Christmas, E3 deserved it's own yuletide carol.
While I spent the majority of my time at this year's "L.A.-lapalooza" in private meetings checking out some of the best games on the show floor - though I still envy my coworker who got pencilled in for the Gears of War demo - E3 was still...E3. Sure the majority of media coverage was done in meetings or on GameSpot's gigantic live demo stage, and anyone who was anyone didn't do much work on the show floor, but let's face it, what made E3 what it was is the very thing now being stripped away. We can all say it was about the games, and to a certain extent it was, but aren't other events like PAX, GDC, and TGS "about the games" as well? There are somewhat different crowds at those events, but none of them got as much attention as E3. If it weren't for the flashing lights and the CGI trailers everyone rips on after the show and adores during the show, E3 would've been just another gaming event for all these years. Fact of the matter is that E3 was much like a bug zapper: nothing but a fancy glow, but it drew the eyes of and ears of journalists and gamers alike.
Without that glow we'll see the event for what it really is, a place where press and business associates gather to see demos worthy of EB Games' kiosks and maybe the Xbox Live Marketplace. What really makes the demos even newsworthy is the fact that the games aren't out yet, or even close to release. Yet that's what we're playing: game demos.
So while it makes sense financially for just about all the parties involved, E3 will never be the same. In fact I really don't want to call it E3 any more. I think I'll just call it "that convention in LA."
posted by Create Play at 12:37 AM
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