Video game trade show E3 nixed for 2022

The Entertainment Software Association has again canceled its formerly annual gaming midyear trade show E3, the group confirmed to Axios.

Why it matters: What had been a story in recent years of the pandemic’s impact on trade shows is giving way to signs of an organization struggling to maintain its former signature event.

• "E3 will return in 2023 with a reinvigorated showcase that celebrates new and exciting video games and industry innovations," an ESA rep told Axios, saying it will be a physical and digital event.
• The ESA canceled the show in 2020, held a digital-only streamed version in 2021 and had planned a digital one for 2022, citing health concerns. That was then canceled, the ESA says, to focus on next year's show.
• For decades, E3 had been the blowout event for games marketing, a mid-June mix of big publisher showcases and a physical trade show at the Los Angeles Convention Center attended by tens of thousands of industry professionals, media and some fans.

Yes but: This does not mean the games industry will miss its dose of mid-summer hype this year.

• Gaming hype-man Geoff Keighley, who briefly partnered with E3 to enhance its showcase event until a split in 2020, has been promoting a series of events called the Summer Game Fest.
• Moments after the E3 news broke today, the Fest was tweeting again to promote “an industry-wide celebration of video games, featuring a spectacular live kickoff show hosted by Geoff Keighley.”

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