Gaming trade shows may never return to their former glory

This story about Nintendo Direct and Reggie Fils-Aimé's hot take on E3, boiled down, in 1:33 minutes.

What's the fuss?

Nintendo aired their much anticipated Nintendo Direct, a video showcase of their upcoming announcements and releases, earlier today. With many other gaming companies following suit, in-person trade shows may not have the pull it once did.

The situation

The year is 1995. Ticket in hand, you brim with anticipation as you enter the Los Angeles Convention Center alongside 50,000 other gamers to attend E3, the largest video game convention in the world. When Nintendo reveals that the Nintendo 64 is going to come out in the following year, you know that gaming's about to hit it's golden era.

E3 has grown greatly in size since it's inception in 1995, so big that it's almost impossible to get a ticket if you don't work in the gaming industry. With millions watching the show online, E3 is an iconic giant in the gaming community. 

This year, E3 is going entirely virtual and will consist of purely digital streams from major developers, influencers, and other media organizations. But with many other developers doing this on their own already, some aren't convinced that E3 will be the splash it once was.

Boiling it down

Today's Nintendo Direct, the first one in more than a year, had some high profile announcements and has amassed almost half a million views in 4 hours. With other developers having similar showcases such as Capcom's Resident Evil showcase, it's questionable how E3 will differentiate itself on a digital level.

Reggie Fils-Aimé, former President of Nintendo of America and a celebrity in his own right, shares the same sentiment.

...if you don’t have all of these different elements working together, so all of the big announcements, the hands-on... I think that’s what’s key to a successful E3 in the future, and candidly, if the ESA doesn't do it - then other people will.

The magic of E3, alongside the announcements, is the show floor - the ability for players to get their hands on upcoming content. With many developers increasingly in favor of hosting their own events and skipping out on E3 altogether (even before COVID), E3 may have a tough time one-upping itself from prior years.

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