The first E3 in-person event in 4 years will reportedly not feature Nintendo, Xbox, or Sony. The Los Angeles Convention Center, where the gaming showcase and expo usually take place, will host the event this year from June 13 to June 16.

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Three of the most prominent names in the gaming industry are reportedly planning to forgo the annual event, as per IGN. According to “various sources,” the gaming publication has learned that Sony, Xbox, and Nintendo won’t attend E3 or make an appearance on the show floor.    

E3 2023 will be managed by PAX organizer Reedpop and the Entertainment Software Association, as was reported earlier. Reedpop had initially declared that it planned to honor “what’s always worked” for this gaming event and that the in-person event would come back for E3 2023. The team publicly confirmed its objectives for E3, among which was to put on a “better business event” that would make it simpler to interact, meet, and carry out interviews (via GamesIndustry).         

Additionally, by creating a better consumer experience with activities for fans to participate in, everybody unveils games during E3, whether they are attending the convention center or not, can work together, support, and become friends.    

Additionally, the event promises to make indie publishers and developers more accessible and give them the chance to display their work in a room where gamers can interact with it firsthand. Although it did not explicitly state whether it would participate in E3, Xbox announced that it would be going back to Los Angeles for its yearly summer showcase. 

Phil Spencer, Xbox CEO stated in an interview with IGN last week that the company chose its showcase date particularly to attend E3. E3 is simply one of the key moments in gaming history, he continued.

We, therefore, schedule our showcase, like always, at a time that, hopefully, is suitable for media and even consumers who are attending the E3 event. This is what we are attempting to do right now. During the same interview, Spencer claimed that the year 2022 was “too light on games,” adding, “There’s no doubt we didn’t do enough of that in 2022.”