E3 is one of the biggest gaming events in the world, and for gamers who have never been to an E3, they've always wished they did. Personally, I got to attend E3 2019 and loved it. I am now 40 years old, and all my life I've always wanted to go... it was a huge tick off my bucket list, feeling like a kid in a candy store walking around checking out all the games, cosplay, and a billion other things. It was truly unforgettable... but, the pandemic changed all of that.

Now... E3 2023 won't be going ahead.

Almost a year ago, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) announced E3 2023 would go ahead, yet today they pulled the plug on the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). IGN has since confirmed this, with two sources of the site announcing that the ESA sent emails out to its members today announcing the cancellation of E3 2023.

The email explained that while E3 "remains a beloved event and brand" that E3 2023 "simply did not garner the sustained interest necessary to execute it in a way that would showcase the size, strength, and impact of our industry".

The ESA explained in a public statement from Kyle Marsden-Kish, the Global VP of Gaming of ReedPop: "This was a difficult decision because of all the effort we and our partners put toward making this event happen, but we had to do what’s right for the industry and what’s right for E3. We appreciate and understand that interested companies wouldn’t have playable demos ready and that resourcing challenges made being at E3 this summer an obstacle they couldn’t overcome. For those who did commit to E3 2023, we’re sorry we can’t put on the showcase you deserve and that you’ve come to expect from ReedPop’s event experiences".

E3 2023 was meant to run between June 13 and June 16 at its usual spot: the Los Angeles Convention Center, acting as the first in-person E3 since 2019 (the one that I went to, coincidentally). It was pushed into a digital format in 2021, canceled in 2022 with the ESA wanting to push a "revitalised showcase" that would lay the foundation for hybrid industry events... aaaaand now it's gone.

The next big computer- and gaming-related event is Computex 2023, which isn't even 60 days away from now. Woooooo!