E3 2022: Everything You Need To Know

With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, E3 2022 remains largely a mystery, with the future of the trade show even more uncertain. The Electronic Entertainment Expo is held by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), and attracts many of the largest video game publishers for a few days of presentations on upcoming games. Even though many viewed E3 as irrelevant and unnecessary in 2021, last year’s event saw a radical change in the event’s format, forsaking an in-person convention for the sake of public health.

After the games industry’s rapid growth through the early 1990s, the first E3 was held in 1995 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The LACC would be the primary location for E3 throughout the years, since other locations, such as Georgia in 1997 and 1998, saw a drastic decline in attendance. E3 would have various attendance restrictions until 2016, when the trade show began to be gradually opened to members of the public. In 2020, shortly after the beginning of the pandemic, the 26th E3 was completely canceled for the first time in the trade show’s history.

E3 returned in 2021 as an entirely digital event. Although E3 2021 had major new game reveals like previous years, many felt the amalgamation of livestreams was underwhelming, lacking the excitement of presentations in front of live audiences. The response to the digital format does not bode well for the future of E3, since the 2022 event has already dismissed the possibility of an in-person trade show, according to IGN. This points to the possibility of another digital outing, but IGN claims the ESA could not confirm whether or not one was being held.

What Are The E3 2022 Dates

Since the very existence of E3 2022 is in question, there have been no dates set. After initially taking place in May in the 1990s and 2000s, E3 has gradually moved to be later in the year, taking place in June for more than a decade at this point. In recent years, E3 has settled into the middle of the month, usually taking place over the course of three days sometime between June 10 and June 20. The hesitation in revealing dates for E3 2022 could be from a number of possibilities; the ESA could be having trouble securing publishers and developers willing to participate, there could be issues trying to revamp the digital format to make it more exciting, or any number of other reasons. It’s also important to note that Sumer Game Fest confirmed its return for 2022, meaning there may be concerns over E3’s audience and participants going elsewhere for summertime video game announcements.

Will E3 2022 Be In-Person

According to the ESA via communication with IGN, E3 2022 will definitely not be an in-person event. Before the cancelation of E3 2020, the trade show enjoyed three straight years of high attendance, with a peak in 2018 of more than 69,000 attendees. With the COVID-19 pandemic still largely uncontrolled, an in-person event of such a size – especially one that is mostly indoors – is simply not feasible. The pandemic has had a tremendous effect on the gaming industry, from chip shortages affecting hardware production, to work-from-home complications causing many games to be delayed. 2021’s digital event felt like a weathering of the storm, but with E3 becoming less relevant every year, it’s starting to seem unlikely that the trade show will ever return to its large, in-person format.

Will E3 2022 Be A Digital Event

If E3 2022 does actually happen this summer, it will almost certainly be a digital event. Rather than trailers and gameplay footage being shown to live audiences, presenters will likely continue to adopt pre-recorded showcases. Pre-edited videos have become increasingly common in the industry with Nintendo’s Directs and Sony’s State of Plays. Nintendo has actually been presenting pre-recorded Directs at E3 itself since 2013.

Although an all digital event lets presenters have greater control over their conference showcases, the format loses some of the charm of presenting in front of a live audience. Additionally, a digital event doesn’t allow E3 to have a show floor for those in attendance to try demos and the like. As a worst case scenario, insiders have claimed E3 could be canceled rather than held online, but this should be taken with some skepticism until there’s been an official word from the ESA.

What’s The E3 2022 Schedule & Publishers

Without E3 2022 officially confirmed, there is no set schedule for the trade show. There has also been no confirmation of any publishers appearing, since the existence of E3 2022 is still up in the air. Highlights of years past have usually been gaming’s big three, Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony, but starting in 2019, Sony has not participated in the event, instead choosing to host its own PlayStation Showcases. Without any sort of confirmation just yet, a similar line-up to last year might be expected at E3 2022. Conferences were held last year by the following publishers:

• Capcom
• Gearbox Software
• Microsoft (joint E3 2021 presentation with Bethesda following buyout)
• Nintendo
• Square Enix
• Ubisoft

There are always plenty of other events during the same time frame that are and are not officially part of E3 itself. Last year had Summer Game Fest Kickoff Live, Guerrilla Collective, Wholesome Games, a showcase from Devolver Digital, and more.

How & Where To Watch E3 2022

With no confirmed dates or booked presentations, there have not yet been any plans for how E3 2022 will be shown. Since the rise of internet streaming platforms, there is never one single destination for the E3 broadcast. Many publishers host their own, official livestream via YouTube and Twitch. Other major gaming outlets will also host livestreams on their respective channels. Various E3 presenters might also allow their conferences to be co-streamed by popular Twitch and YouTube streamers, though that tends to be on a case-by-case basis. Although E3 seems to be declining, especially after the last two years, it is still a massive week for gaming news, making streams incredibly easy to find online. Last year’s E3 gave a big boost to small games, and that may be the case again if E3 2022 returns in its digital format.

Source: IGN

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