E3 Reborn As GamePro Expo

GameSpot is reporting on the announcement from IDG that they'll be putting on a new L.A.-area games expo, with the ESA's blessing. With that nod of the head, the "GamePro Expo" becomes the 'official successor' to the glitz and glamor of E3. From the article: "According to Michael Krouse, vice president of convention sales for the LA Convention and Visitors Bureau, IDG is estimating that the event will draw 30,000 attendees, and that long term, those numbers could grow. 'I am absolutely convinced this show will be as big as [the old] E3,' Krouse told GameSpot. The new show will be endorsed by the ESA — 'a very important element to the partnership,' says the memo, which goes on to say the event will take place at E3's former digs, the Los Angeles Convention Center, on October 18, 19, and 20, 2007." Given that GDC, Gen Con, and the rest have already planned for larger spaces IDG is going to have a fight on its hands next year. Should be interesting.

Comments

Check out the next generation systems!

[Anonymous Coward]

At the 2007 E3^H^H GamePro Expo will showcase the new, top of the line, previously unreleased PS3 and it's premiere launch title, Duke Nukem Forever.

Ship of Theseus, anyone?

[UbuntuDupe]

If you switch out every aspect of E3 except the blessing of E3 heads and it being in L.A., is it still really the "successor to E3"?

You're welcome.

Re:Ship of Theseus, anyone?

[DDLKermit007]

Meh...I'm still going to E3. No need imo to goto some bastardized version. I'll take the smaller one that'll have everyone.

Re:Ship of Theseus, anyone?

[Anonymous Coward]

Obviously, it's only the same show if the floorboards of the new showroom are constructed out of the planks from the old showroom.

A Good Thing?

[rsmith-mac]

I can't see how this is a good thing. The hedonistic style of E3 was the whole problem with the expo; it was sucking up money and manpower so that increasing numbers of members of the public could gawk at CGI trailers and scantly-clad women. Getting rid of E3 for something that's more focused on game development, purchasing, and tighter press controls was supposed to free up those previous wasted resources and put them to better use. If someone is just recreating E3, how has anything improved?

Re:A Good Thing?

[AltGrendel]

While I'm inclined to agree, I'll wait till Tyco and Gabe report on it.

That should be interesting.

Re:A Good Thing?

[gt_mattex]

..CGI trailers and scantly-clad women..

I do believe you've answered your own question.

Typical guy response? Yes. Any less true? Nope.

Re:A Good Thing?

[drinkypoo]

I can't see how this is a good thing. The hedonistic style of E3 was the whole problem with the expo; it was sucking up money and manpower so that increasing numbers of members of the public could gawk at CGI trailers and scantly-clad women.

I don't think you understand - that's what E3 was for, that was the reason there were so many attendees, and thus the reason there were so many exhibitors. Booth babes and bullshit video reels are what made E3 what it was.

Re:A Good Thing?

[Sage Gaspar]

The people that used to put on the event were the ESA, an industry association theoretically supported by its members, the developers and publishers. The complaints from E3 were from their constituents, a lot of whom felt that it was mostly a big money and time sink for very little in the way of reward.

The IDG is sponsoring this event, and their business is gaming rags and trade shows. E3 probably sold a lot of copy for them and I'm sure they'll get some money as the event's organizers. I mean, even the name is advertising for one of their (shithole) mags. I'm sure they have some plan to leverage publishers into attending.

Nothing's improved, it's just that the people with a vested interest in E3 and similar events have decided to carry the torch in the interest of their profit.

E3 East?

[John Gaming Target]

So once again the east coast gets the shaft when it comes to a game-related expo/convention.

You know, a lot of people (why, it's probably close to half of the country!) lives closer to the Atlantic Ocean.

Re:E3 East?

[pawn63295]

Yeah i was wondering this myself. well we do have digital life (which is not to impressive) our game expos and things of that sort are scarce. I think its because of all the crap our left wing save the children parents tango with game ratings and such.

Re:E3 East?

[Anonymous Coward]

"So once again the east coast gets the shaft when it comes to a game-related expo/convention.

You know, a lot of people (why, it's probably close to half of the country!) lives closer to the Atlantic Ocean."

The majority of the gaming industry is located on the west coast. Admittedly, there are some developers on the east, however the INDUSTRY TRADESHOW should follow the industry.

It Won't Die!

[blueZhift]

Heh! I guess there's some money to be made, because, despite all of the criticisms, it looks like E3 is just not going to die. No one ever voluntarily leaves money on the table. And to stay competitive, the game publishers and developers will get sucked back into this new E3. LOL, same as it ever was!

AVN next door still?

[automattic]

I'll be there as long as the AVN (Adult Video News) event is still held in the adjacent building.

What a weekend that'll be......more pron and games that most could handle. Whew

Re:AVN next door still?

[Aiku1337]

I'm pretty sure you're thinking of CES, not E3. CES is held in Las Vegas in January. E3 was usually in May, in LA.

Re:AVN next door still?

[automattic]

Yes, you're right. So I will be overdosing on TECH and pron, not games. Still not a bad combination.

Corporate Crapfest

[mazarin5]

I am absolutely convinced this show will be as big as [the old] E3,

Except with out any of the smaller, creative outfits that made it wonderful. It will just have 400 booths dedicated to EA, 54 of those for Madden. Another 80 dedicated to flashy new DRM.

Hint:

[Knara]

Limiting E3 to the small amount of press that will bother to attend now will result in the death of E3 as a relevant convention.

And that's your Gamepro Game Tip.

Can anyone get me the hook up?

[CrazyJim1]

E3 only lets people in the industry go. Since I'm out of the industry, can someone hire me as a game review writer or something as an excuse for me to go?

Re:Can anyone get me the hook up?

[Rydia]

This is exactly why E3 needed to be tightened up. The whole idea of a convention for an industry is to inform the public, through the media, of what's good and upcoming. Booth babes and a bunch of dorks there to gawk at things doesn't help anyone. Except maybe said dorks.

Re:Can anyone get me the hook up?

[deinol]

The whole idea of a convention for an industry is to inform the public, through the media, of what's good and upcoming.

I think what you meant to say was:

The whole idea of a convention for an industry is to inform the public of what's good and upcoming.

A convention is: an assembly of persons met for a common purpose. (Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law)

The point of a convention like E3 is to let as many people as possible know about your product. The most effective way to do this is to let as many people as possible come and see it. Sure, you want the media there so they can report to people who are interested but can't make it. But letting every blogger or gamer comic come and look around at E3 helps increase the exposure of products. While yes, the big companies like Nintendo and Microsoft inevitably fight an advertising war of gigantic proportions, the small companies are the ones that are helped the most. In a closed "Media only" event, the guys I saw with a smaller MMO would never be seen by the public as the media fawned over the industry giants. But if a random guy who makes a web comic, even a smaller one, sees it and then comments about it on his site, that can be incredible exposure for a little company. So while E3 became a giant circus, the bigger it gets the more powerful it becomes.

I don't think the industry needs a closed door industry back patting session. That won't help at all. I knew that Nintendo and Sony were making next generation consoles before E3, and any details they want to release to the press at any time will filter over here to slashdot and a zillion other sites. Games should be fun. A giant convention about games should let as many people see as many games as possible.

Then again, I'm thinking of heading to the Penny Arcade one if I can make it next time. A game convention should be about playing games, not video clips I can download from the internet anyway.

Re:Can anyone get me the hook up?

[nintender]

For several years, there was a security hole in their automatic registration system. I went as media during those years, and it was evident that I was not the only one. My first year, I paid $45 bucks and they sent me two passes for the floor. After that it went up to $275, but you didn't have to be a member of anything. The early years were cool, lots of giveaways, lots of true demos of new products, but that all faded. The last two years were lousy for new stuff.

Re:Can anyone get me the hook up?

[Sage Gaspar]

Since I'm out of the industry, can someone hire me as a game review writer or something as an excuse for me to go?

Haha, the good old days, when any fuckwit with a game review website could land passes to E3. I wonder if they cut tickets to the largely irrelevant sites that used to get off on taking their yearly trip to Cali and doing some major league "reporting".

Re:E3 East? Not in NYC

[Anonymous Coward]

There used to be a lot of security conventions (ISC, ASIS) in NYC. But my company and a whole host of others stopped going simply from dealing with the union bullshit.

Plugging in your laptop to a power strip? Uh, that will be $75 and you have to wait for the union guy to do it. Don't like it? Plug in your own and watch them pull the power to your entire booth.

There are reasons why the big shows in NYC keep getting smaller.

ooh

[minus_273]

Gamepro! does that mean it is going to be decorated with really bad sketches that barely resemble the characters in the games being shown?

E3 has been dead for 3 years.

[Crasty]

And it's already been recreated, as PAX. E3 was never for the public anyway, as much as everyone likes to think it was. (Even the promoters)

Thank god...

[CaseM]

Thank god a hardcore gamer like myself will still have an opportunity to see some boobs.

Big, noisy & Public is a GOOD thing.

[NEOGEOman]

There's a compelling reason to have large, noisy shows that the public can easily get access to, that people seem to ignore while whining about how E3 ain't what it used to be. Tens of thousands of your best, most affluent customers all coming to your showroom, and checking out the goods.

The Tokyo Game Show is open to the public for two out of three days, and it attracts smackloads of people, and the game companies know it's good advertising. E3 tried to have it both ways: big, colourful, sexy, but with the goodies kept to itself and its cronies.

As long as there's a quiet show somewhere where the industry types can hobnob, the big noisy and more public show will still fill a need.

New Icon Needed

[Sean0michael]

I guess the /. editors will finally have to change an icon... It's been a long time coming, but since E3 has been replaced, it only makes sense that /.'s E3 icon should change with it. In with the new, out with the old.