Rated E For Money
So now it’s E4. The successor to E3 has been deemed the Entertainment For All Expo or “E For All”, but that name is stupid, so it’s E4 from now on, which is only slightly less stupid. Apparently according to this official banner of theirs “for all” even includes douches in powder blue trucker hats. But let’s get to the point here. E3 is back and now even more consumer focused than it was originally, which brings some pretty hefty pros and cons along with it.
The new format will include the same showy loud displays of days past, a seemingly larger focus on consumer electronics (CES style), retail zones set up for consumers to purchase things that were demoed on the showfloor, a Video Games Live concert, videogame tournaments, and job-fair/networking opportunities. While this sounds nice for those who couldn’t make it to past E3s (it honestly just required some effort, it wasn’t as restrictive as many were led to believe), it doesn’t sound all that spectacular to me.
[we called it e4 first, before ANYBODY!]
Having attended E3 in 2005, I can tell you that what made the show awesome for me most definitely wasn’t the showfloor. Its loud, bright, showy obnoxiousness is a curiosity which can be sated in about an hour. As has been noted countless times before in other spaces, E3 was definitely not the best environment for gaming. Most impressions of games are just as valid getting them via online and videos, as you already know how the controls will work out and can imagine how it plays. This is not true of the Wii, as it is really the only platform that I think would really benefit from showing preview games to consumers in such an expo format. What made E3 awesome was all the behind closed doors demos and interviews with the developers. Talking with the people that are the heart and soul of the industry was what made E3 worth it in the end to me, and is something that E4 will likely lack for the most part. Add to that what will probably be a very packed show floor with people of all ages and the headache that was the E3 showfloor suddenly becomes E4’s migraine.
There are a few things that could redeem E4 in my eyes, however. First, the videogame tournaments. With proper moderation, great prize incentives, and a large selection of games for the tournaments, this could be a great thing for the tournament scene. It would be nice to be able to meet people you’ve only read or heard about at local gatherings, as well as the opportunity to meet expert players in a variety of genres. Second, the potential of a successful job-fair/networking component. My hope is that the time slots that used to be used for publishers and developers to advertise their new tech to eachother at E3 can instead be used for educating people interested in the industry on what it’s really like to work in gaming and entertainment and present avenues for them to further investigate their career interests in the field. The networking could also be a big plus for small, independent artists, sites, and gaming leagues to get more exposure, which could be great for gaming culture. Third, move to San Diego or San Fransisco.
As much potential as E4 has to be a giant money-grabbing mess of annoying, I still hope that it works out into a positive for not only the industry and the economy of L.A. (the latter being a very big reason why there is an E4), but for the consumer and gaming culture itself.
