Where da party at?
Sure, E3 has brought us lots of goodies, news, screenshots, trailers and all that fun stuff this year, but what about the dark, seedy underbelly? Industry executives, at EA and Ubisoft no less, are slamming the conference following its end.
Being interviewed by the San Francisco Chronicle, EA boss John Riccitiello said, "I hate E3 like this. Either we need to go back to the old E3, or we'll have to have our own private events."
Ubisoft's head Laurent Detoc echoed his sentiments: "E3 this year is terrible. The world used to come to E3. Now it's like a pipe-fitters show in the basement." Rightfully declared, most would say; E3 was once something of a party in itself, where 60,000 gamers, execs, developers and booth babes alike would rub elbows. Now? A 5000 invite-only press affair. So discreet!
Moreover, the event used to take place in May; Ubisoft VIP Alain Corre says this choice of setting was critical:
"It's one milestone in the communication of your products throughout the year, and it's important because it's the ramp-up for Christmas. [But] E3 here, mid-July, in the Convention Center in downtown LA - it's not appropriate I would say."
Even Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto has his concerns, which he voiced to MSNBC:
"For a very long time, E3 was an event where — and certainly Nintendo included — catered specifically to the core gamer. Now we look at more … an opportunity for us to introduce new concepts and new types of play that we intend to bring to the broader audience, particularly because of the media that gathers at E3 now.
So while attending an E3 event like this, they might be given the impression that Nintendo is no longer focusing on the games that appeal to the core gamer, in fact we’re still working on many of those titles, but it’s just not the type of event where we’ll be showcasing that anymore."
Of course, all this disdain and concern is useless without some action: will E3 be the same again next year, or will folks like John Riccitiello stick to their word and flat-out abandon it if nothing changes?
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And what about those who walked away with smiles on their faces? Like Microsoft, or Capcom and their Resident Evil hype? Bethesda? Square-Enix? Take-Two? Valve? You know, all the other companies showing there. Some of the reps/devs were actually quite EXCITED about their work, and that's honestly a refreshing change from these stuffy execs who stand there on a giant stage sounding rehearsed (not pointing any fingers). EA (give us something other than Spore and Mirror's Edge to cheer about, THEN complain), Ubisoft (bless their hearts), and Nintendo are just a sampling, and I honestly don't see them leaving E3 any time soon. That'd just be suicide.
Sure, it wasn't the way it used to be, but I saw people of the press from around the WORLD. E3 has changed, but it isn't dead. Perhaps the disgruntled ones don't realize that catering to the press can be trickier than if the audience were just a bunch of GameStop employees? You know, people who read and write about them, keep up with their news, have opinions of their own rather than slobbering all over them like they were gods.
It's an interesting point to make, but it'd help to get some feedback by going to the event (speaking of international, I saw Eurogamer folks there). As for Rick Perry? Seeing the governor of Texas listed on the brochure was NOT appealing. On the other hand, the conferences held by gaming companies were PACKED. Ubisoft ran out of seating.