Support NeoGAF

[Ownage]

Damn. Lots of good memories at E3. Even got to hug Miyamoto once.

I smoked hand rolled cigars with him and Kojima at the Biltmore one year. Good times.

 

[Badlucktroll]

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

So there goes my bucket list dream of attending it one day.

To be fair, if you can't do the booth babes, you might as well just retire it.

really speaks to how gaming used to be one big party but is now one big wet blanket today, no more sexy girls, people losing money and jobs hand over fist, the party's over.

 

[Justin9mm]

One of the biggest industries and communities in the world and can't even organise a root in a brothel. It's pretty ridiculous. I blame the organisers being shit at their job to get the event to where it needs to be and evolve. They needed to find a way to bring Sony back etc. and make it a worthwhile huge event. The gaming industry is a billion dollar business, it should almost be a super bowl type size event. Celebrities, artists, the works.

 

[Danjin44]

I personally only care about the actual game announcement, it doesn't matter where they announce it.

 

[March Climber]

I'm late to the thread, but are there multiple posts blaming this on everything but the ESA and E3 themselves?

The gaming industry is a billion dollar business, it should almost be a super bowl type size event. Celebrities, artists, the works.

This is exactly what Geoff Keighley attempts to do and people seem to hate it every year.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

One of the biggest industries and communities in the world and can't even organise a root in a brothel. It's pretty ridiculous. I blame the organisers being shit at their job to get the event to where it needs to be and evolve. They needed to find a way to bring Sony back etc. and make it a worthwhile huge event. The gaming industry is a billion dollar business, it should almost be a super bowl type size event. Celebrities, artists, the works.

The culture no longer allows it, can't have the girls, can't have the booze flowing freely, can't cut loose, one false move and your career will be ruined.

The game industry is a Stalinist climate now, it's why the Game Awards attempts at humor feel so strained.

It was one big party, but the party's over, it started to end as soon as the one with the lipstick and hoop earrings showed up.

 

[j0hnnix]

This sucks, it was only a matter of time. I always loved the big events and different interviews. Now it's just one big trailer with tight jeans and a bulge on stage.

 

[DeafTourette]

The culture no longer allows it, can't have the girls, can't have the booze flowing freely, can't cut loose, one false move and your career will be ruined.

The game industry is a Stalinist climate now, it's why the Game Awards attempts at humor feel so strained.

It was one big party, but the party's over, it started to end as soon as the one with the lipstick and hoop earrings showed up.

I'm glad the culture of "the booth babe" is over... no more idiotic dudes lusting over models who are paid to present the games, crossing the lines to actual sexual harassment, puking on the showroom floor (DAMN LACC is HUGE) from too much booze, etc. When I went, it was mostly respectful and INCREDIBLY awesome!!

So having a safe and respectful environment is "Stalinist"?

Ooooookkkkkk ...

Edit: There was still plenty of fun to be had AT the show and the parties afterwards. I had a BLAST at the GREE afterparty.

 

[ReBurn]

E3 has been dead for years. This is just the last nail in the coffin.

 

[Kaljinyu]

I am old enough now to say that 20 years ago people were already shitting on E3 left and right. And the industry in general.

...Oh the industry is going downhill. Its only about the 3D graphics now. Gameplay sucks these days. Its all sequels. Only bullshots and fake CGI trailers. Everything is about marketing and focus groups. God damn those motion controls. Who needs touch screens on a hand held. Fuck all those casuals and the industry for chasing after them....blablabla, every year the same spiel. Hardly anyone ever came back from it really being satisfied or happy (or maybe people just like shitting on other people, which is of course very much possible)

And now that the event that lead to the most bitching and moaning every year is finally dead after dying a slowly for the past 5 or so years...everyone is looking back at it with fondness?

Come on, yeah I liked E3 as well, it had some crazy moments and big reveals. Last guardian, followed by FF7 Remake reveal, followed by Shenmue III is one of the most epic moment in gaming imho. But mooooooost of it was kinda trashy. I remember more people complaining about too much marketing (cars, actors, kids, sports people etc. being on stage), to many numbers (remember when it was actually a trade show primarily aimed at investors?), too much CGI, bad presenters, too much cringe, not enough reveals, etc., etc, etc. And now finally all your complaints have been heard and its gone. Thats what you get. Be happy for once.

I will still gladly board any Hype Train when I feel like it, this one just isnt stopping at the LA convention center and thats kinda fine.

I'm sure the people who complained are happy. But cringe and CGI are what I liked about E3. I liked it when it was good. I liked it when it was bad. Most of us did, that's why we memed on it so hard. There is hype in cringe. There is hype in good things.

But there is no hype in an event that no one cares about. And frankly, no one cares about these other shows. Not like they cared about E3.

really sad. I guess TGA is the replacement. A kinda weaksauce one, it was so nice when Nintendo, Xbox, Sega and Playstation all throw down at the same time, what a time to be alive, hopefully in. I wouldn't mind if the TGA's became e3 in viewship and brought all the publishers back into a single event.

I am in the minority of really liking the TGA's. I dig cultural events where everyone tunes in live to either like or bitch about. Just helps you feel connected like the NBA finals or Superbowl. It's more important than people think. Video games need their own version of the Academy Awards, some sort of "official stamp" that we all can collectively moan about but secretly wish our game won or fantasize of winning one someday. I think there is a cultural importance Geoff understands and I am glad it seems to have gained major steam.

This is why people don't care about the other shows. Because they aren't this. The Game Awards might be this someday, but they aren't yet. Know how I know? Because they aren't covered like E3 was. Companies don't throw all their eggs into the baskets of these shows like they did with E3.

I'm glad the culture of "the booth babe" is over... no more idiotic dudes lusting over models who are paid to present the games, crossing the lines to actual sexual harassment, puking on the showroom floor (DAMN LACC is HUGE) from too much booze, etc. When I went, it was mostly respectful and INCREDIBLY awesome!!

So having a safe and respectful environment is "Stalinist"?

Ooooookkkkkk ...

Is there a respectful way to have liquor and booth babes? I don't want sexual harassment, but I don't want a sanitized environment where there's no fun either.

 

[DeafTourette]

Is there a respectful way to have liquor and booth babes? I don't want sexual harassment, but I don't want a sanitized environment where there's no fun either.

There were "booth babes" when I went both times... they just weren't scantily clad with dudes clawing at them. Like this...

 

[Deerock71]

FWIW, this thread title gave me a hankering to watch The Evil Dead.

 

[Perrott]

I'll always remember the show thanks to moments like this (timestamped):

 

[StereoVsn]

E3 in the 90s and pre-2010 or so was damn amazing. It was amazing to follow, watch and I managed to actually go once.

Geoff’s shows just aren’t even close. The whole point was that it was a multi day in person event with basically everyone in the industry there, crazy conferences, interesting booths setups and more.

Sigh…. I feel old.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

I'm glad the culture of "the booth babe" is over... no more idiotic dudes lusting over models who are paid to present the games, crossing the lines to actual sexual harassment, puking on the showroom floor (DAMN LACC is HUGE) from too much booze, etc. When I went, it was mostly respectful and INCREDIBLY awesome!!

So having a safe and respectful environment is "Stalinist"?

Ooooookkkkkk ...

Edit: There was still plenty of fun to be had AT the show and the parties afterwards. I had a BLAST at the GREE afterparty.

I am aware of some incidents where guys got a little creepy, but just because some people misbehaved doesn't mean everyone's fun should be taken away.

I'm sure the later events were still fun for what they were, I wish we were at least getting that than nothing at all, but the cultural climate being what it is, I'm sure made it harder and harder to justify the money spent, eventually they could longer justify it.

There were "booth babes" when I went both times... they just weren't scantily clad with dudes clawing at them. Like this...

Meh, I like it when they were showing some skin, there's nothing wrong with that, if you go to a Florida beach (and I have!) you'll see tons of scantily clad women, thong swimwear is damn near the standard, why is that context ok, but not at E3? It's weirdly puritanical, I thought it was sexist to tell women to "cover up" (and it is)

E3 in the 90s and pre-2010 or so was damn amazing. It was amazing to follow, watch and I managed to actually go once.

Geoff’s shows just aren’t even close. The whole point was that it was a multi day in person event with basically everyone in the industry there, crazy conferences, interesting booths setups and more.

Sigh…. I feel old.

It was amazing and it's very painful to think of that being gone, gaming has really lost a big part of what made it a fun hobby with no E3.

 

[justiceiro]

Nintendo master plan is complete.

 

[Astral Dog]

It gave us some good moments, but it was time to move on

Nintendo was right with the Direct approach ,i remember everybody calling them out for skipping E3

 

[thismeinteil]

Good riddance. It had become too sanitized. No booth babes. No outrageous moments. The rumors are some companies, like Sony, wanted more access for the public to come, but other companies wanted to keep it more corporate controlled.

While it could have been a massive event where 100K+ came to enjoy, it remained mainly opened to the media and gaming elites, only opening up to public in a limited fashion for its last 2-3 years.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

Mark my words, future generations will really romanticize the E3s of old the way we romanticize jazz parties of the 1920s or Studio 54 in the 1970s.

Crazy, intense free for alls of a very particular time and place that just couldn't last forever.

 

[nial]

Sony left e3 in 2018. It's dead for 5 years

Since E3 2019, actually. In E3 2018 they showcased Firewall Zero Hour, Spider-Man, Astro Bot Rescue Mission, Déraciné, Days Gone, Blood & Truth, Concrete Genie, Death Stranding, Dreams, The Last of Us Part II, and Ghost of Tsushima, along with a few other stuff. Great, varied lineup.

 

[Kaljinyu]

There were "booth babes" when I went both times... they just weren't scantily clad with dudes clawing at them. Like this...

Is how much they skin they show a problem? If they wore less clothes would that be to the detriment of the event?

FWIW, this thread title gave me a hankering to watch The Evil Dead.

Because "Evil Dead" kinda sounds like "E3 Dead?"

Mark my words, future generations will really romanticize the E3s of old the way we romanticize jazz parties of the 1920s or Studio 54 in the 1970s.

Crazy, intense free for alls of a very particular time and place that just couldn't last forever.

I wonder if that's where we're headed for a lot of things, as life in general becomes more remote and automated thanks to the Internet and AI. Because that's what killed this. Just as post-war America realized it's cheaper and more profitable to synthesize ingredients for mass production, as opposed to making them with real and expensive ingredients.

Why does Netherrealm Studios need a forum like they had back in the Midway days, when Twitter does the trick for less money? Why fly out to California and worry about competing with other companies, when you could deliver news DI-rectly to an audience made mostly of people who already enjoy what you make? Doesn't matter how you trend on Twitter, just as long as you trend on Twitter. That'll get you brand awareness without an E3.

An event set during a specific time you had to tune into that everyone watched and was a whole big thing, it'll be treated like TV you can't stream. Or music you have to play on velvet.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

Just leaving this Game Trailers (EZA) react here to the two of the most hype E3 reveals in recent memory.

2015 seems like the last year things were still mostly normal, Capcom had a big booty cosplayer dressed as Cammy to promote Street Fighter V that year, for example.

But it's been a slow but steady downward spiral since.

I wonder if that's where we're headed for a lot of things, as life in general becomes more remote and automated thanks to the Internet and AI. Because that's what killed this. Just as post-war America realized it's cheaper and more profitable to synthesize ingredients for mass production, as opposed to making them with real and expensive ingredients.

Why does Netherrealm Studios need a forum like they had back in the Midway days, when Twitter does the trick for less money? Why fly out to California and worry about competing with other companies, when you could deliver news DI-rectly to an audience made mostly of people who already enjoy what you make? Doesn't matter how you trend on Twitter, just as long as you trend on Twitter. That'll get you brand awareness without an E3.

An event set during a specific time you had to tune into that everyone watched and was a whole big thing, it'll be treated like TV you can't stream. Or music you have to play on velvet.

I think it is, I think the more times goes on the more remarkable people are gonna view something like E3 in its prime.

The good news is, you can find tons and tons of photos people took from E3s past on Flickr, just type in E3+year, all that stuff is even more priceless now as snapshots of a very different time.

And as you mention, even in the realm of internet, things have really changed and I think increasingly people will romanticize things like forums over social media, how more open and free the internet used to be, classic meme culture, stuff like that.

 

[YuLY]

Man gaming really is just completely going to shit huh

 

[Senua]

Just leaving this Game Trailers (EZA) react here to the two of the most hype E3 reveals in recent memory.

Cringe and always was

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Cringe and always was

 

[FunkMiller]

"We got far too fucking greedy over way too many years, and yet this is somebody else's fault, somehow."

 

[SnapShot]

Eh whatever, TGA basically replaced it

 

[Hudo]

I remember as a wee lad I was always looking forward to the E3 editions of my favorite magazine GameStar (it's shit nowadays). I remember the 1999 E3 edition where they had screenshots of Tiberian Sun, which was shown around the show floor. I was so hyped by that as a kid that I even bothered my Mom, saying "look at this! look at this!" (She's not remotely interested in video games). Good times.

 

[T-0800]

E3 hasn't been good since MGS2 was shown.

 

[Hudo]

I also remember the E3 bit from the Halo 2 making of:

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

"The end of E3 is sad news. "MGS" was exhibited for the first time in Atlanta in 1987. I have participated every year since then. I especially cherish the presentation of "MGS2" in 2000. Already 23 years ago. I'll never forget the standing ovation I received at that time. Without E3, Japanese creators and titles would not have made it to the global stage to this extent. E3 brought together creators and industry figures from all over the world, transcending borders and races. Attending parties and conferences made it easy to connect with people from all over the world. I have nothing but gratitude. Thank you, E3."

 

[Deerock71]

Because "Evil Dead" kinda sounds like "E3 Dead?"

I think it's the combination of words, oddly.

E3 i_ _______l__ Dead​

Weird, huh? Any reason to watch any of the first 3 movies (or the latest one) is a good reason.

 

[Morrie’s wig shop]

It’s what everyone wanted right?? Huh??
Cause during E3 everyone would cry about E3.

Don’t worry the same people who wanted E3 to go away(still trying to figure out why….anyone). Will be the one making threads about how they miss and wish E3 would come back.

I get it it’s expensive, but guess what? So is this hobby….. now we have no expo….

 

[Tomeru]

E4 here we come baby!!!

 

[DonJimbo]

R.I.P E3 you will be missed with all ups and downs
I will never Forget 599 Dollars and the miserable Xbox One Announcement

 

[SportsFan581]

A sad day for gaming. Waiting on the latest news each year, often in a magazine in the early years, was such an exciting event. The rapid fire pacing was what made it special, something the more spread out announcements of today just can't match.

Covid showed the devs they didn't need it though and posting YT announcements is a lot cheaper. LOL

 

[Kaljinyu]

A sad day for gaming. Waiting on the latest news each year, often in a magazine in the early years, was such an exciting event. The rapid fire pacing was what made it special, something the more spread out announcements of today just can't match.

Covid showed the devs they didn't need it though and posting YT announcements is a lot cheaper. LOL

That's the real hurdle. If we want anything to be like E3, we have to promise these companies more than what they'd get from a Nintendo Direct or a State of Play.

 

[jcorb]

This honestly bums me out. I remember always wanted to go as a kid, and kind of always thought I’d be able to go one day. Really sad news that something so core to the Gaming community is over.

Feels like the end of an era, really.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

The life and death of E3

Leading games executives recall their E3 memories and discuss its life, death and future

www.gamesindustry.biz

 

[Radical_3d]

The life and death of E3

Leading games executives recall their E3 memories and discuss its life, death and future

www.gamesindustry.biz

Iconic moments. They missed this one, tho:

 

[DeafTourette]

Memories...

 

[MALpractice311]

I will always maintain that killing E3 was one of the worst ideas this industry has ever had.

 

[chromatic9]

I wonder if things like PSVR2 could get a better shake if it was shown at something like E3.

While the corps save on staging the events, I feel the engagement and focus of the gamer and industry is not there to drive the hype or excitement.

 

[DeafTourette]

 

[Ownage]

Naked streaking poolside at the old Downtown LA Marriott at 2am. Those participating lurkers who see this post........ what was seen cannot be unseen.