E3 2023 has officially been cancelled

E3 2023 has officially been cancelled
Images: E3

Written by 

Joseph Kime

Published 

30th Mar 2023 21:55

Ten years ago, the summer slate of announcements was pretty predictable. The biggest and brightest companies would come together for E3, the biggest games expo of them all, to reveal their upcoming titles and get fans excited for the next year in gaming. But things have changed.

Not only has Geoff Keighley stepped up to the plate with Summer Game Fest, practically taking E3's place as it cancelled its in-person events over the pandemic, but companies are following in Nintendo's footsteps to simply cover the news themselves.

And now, the changing tides of the industry have finally claimed the victim it has been circling for years.

E3 2023 is cancelled

E3 2023 has officially been cancelled
Click to enlarge

We knew it was coming.

After video game giants and publishing companies alike have pulled out of E3 in their droves in favour of alternatives and their own alternatives, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (that's E3 to you) has officially been cancelled for 2023.

The news was confirmed by IGN, and the first planned in-person E3 since 2019 has been officially canned. Two sources confirm that an email was set to the organisation's team to confirm the news, saying that E3 "remains a beloved event and brand" and that this year's event "simply did not garner the sustained interest necessary to execute it in a way that would showcase the size, strength, and impact of our industry."

Is E3 done for?

Truth be told, this isn't a good look for E3.

With Summer Game Fest making leaps and bounds to cover the news that E3 seemed to fail to keep up with over the past few years, and with so many companies deciding that being a part of the showcase isn't worth it, this year's event is dead in the dirt - and it's hard to see a way back for it.

We've known E3 to be the gravitational benchmark for all things gaming, but over the years, it has drifted. Now that this year's event is cancelled, it's not looking good for the future.

It's a pretty brutal announcement. It seems to confirm that the unofficial battle for supremacy between E3 and Geoff Keighley's up-and-coming Summer Game Fest has finally determined a winner. There is no word on whether E3 will return in the future, but it's not looking good for the event. This could be the end of an era.

Joseph Kime
About the author
Joseph Kime
Joseph Kime is the Senior Trending News Journalist for GGRecon from Devon, UK. Before graduating from MarJon University with a degree in Journalism, he started writing music reviews for his own website before writing for the likes of FANDOM, Zavvi and The Digital Fix. He is host of the Big Screen Book Club podcast, and author of Building A Universe, a book that chronicles the history of superhero movies. His favourite games include DOOM (2016), Celeste and Pokemon Emerald.
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