E3, the Electronic Entertainment Expo, turns 25. The first event was held on May 11, 1995 and became a success with more than 40,000 attendees. It was born as a response to the minority treatment that the video game industry had in the fairs of the time, more general, such as the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and the European Computer Trade Show (ECTS). In our report E3: Past, present and future of the most important fair of videogames we review all the history and anecdotes of E3 throughout these more than two decades, and in this other report we review the 25 most remembered moments.
From the beginning the event left us moments to remember, such as the presentation of PlayStation and the announcement of its price, $ 299, 100 less than Saturn. Later, an attempt would be made to export the fair format to other countries, such as Japan, but it did not work due to the little support from the developers. Those, it continued to be celebrated in the United States and with increasing success thanks to the digital media that began to perform coverage practically live and publishing the video of the news shortly after its presentation.
A more concerned E3 than ever
This 25th anniversary comes at the worst time for E3, which it had already suffered problems in 2007 and 2008 when it was renamed E3 Media and Business Summit, with a disorganization that the exhibitors and media moved to the Barker Hangar of the Santa Monica airport and nearby hotels did not like. Later it would return to the usual style, it would add a conference dedicated to the PC and it would lose the support of some publishers who chose to carry out their own events on similar dates and locations, like EA Play.
However, in late 2018 Sony announced its absence from E3 2019 to explore new ways to contact the community, such as the State of Play program. This year they will not attend either, but the coronavirus crisis has been a problem for all the events of the year, forcing the cancellation of E3, Gamescom and Tokyo Game Show, at least in their physical dates. This has been taken advantage of by Summer Game Fest, a digital event organized by Geoff Keighley that spans several months, and publisher presentations, whether it's games or new consoles. This completely changes the ad landscape, much more spaced, and puts E3 2021 in serious difficulties, as many studios could definitely move away from the fair.
