E3 2022 Canceled, Even Its Digital Only Element

E3 2022 has offi­cial­ly been can­celed. Pre­vi­ous­ly, it was planned that a host­ed dig­i­tal-only event would take place in lieu of the usu­al phys­i­cal show­case. How­ev­er, the ESA (the group that runs E3) has con­firmed that the event will not take hap­pen in any form.

A spokesper­son for the ESA report­ed to Ven­ture­Beat the E3 will return in 2023 with a ” “rein­vig­o­rat­ed show­case that cel­e­brates new and excit­ing video games and indus­try innovations.”

The spokesper­son­’s state­ment goes fur­ther to say: “We pre­vi­ous­ly announced that E3 would not be held in per­son in 2022 due to the ongo­ing health risks sur­round­ing COVID-19. Today, we announce that there will also be no dig­i­tal E3 show­case in 2022. Instead, we will devote all our ener­gy and resources to deliv­er­ing a revi­tal­ized phys­i­cal and dig­i­tal E3 expe­ri­ence next sum­mer. Whether enjoyed from the show floor or your favorite devices, the 2023 show­case will bring the com­mu­ni­ty, media, and indus­try back togeth­er in an all-new for­mat and inter­ac­tive experience.”

The ESA also made it clear that E3 2023 will be held in Los Ange­les, and not in anoth­er city. Some have sus­pi­cions that E3 is com­ing to an end.

E3 2019 was the last show that host­ed an in-per­son event. All of E3 2020 was can­celed, and E3 2021 was held as an online event.

When E3 final­ly does return in 2023, ESA is hop­ing to prove it can “revi­tal­ize” the show after it being a year in hia­tus. “We are using this time to shape plans for 2023 and are work­ing with our mem­bers to ensure that the revi­tal­ized show­case sets a new stan­dard for hybrid indus­try events and fan engage­ment,” the ESA said. “We look for­ward to the indi­vid­ual show­cas­es planned for 2022 and will join the com­mu­ni­ty in cel­e­brat­ing and pro­mot­ing the new titles being pre­sent­ed. ESA made the deci­sion to focus its resources and use this time to shape our plans and deliv­er an all-new expe­ri­ence that delights fans, who have the high­est expec­ta­tions for the pre­mier event in video games.”

Even with all the talk­ing from the ESA, no clear rea­son was giv­en for the full on can­ce­la­tion, as “rein­vent­ing” real­ly isn’t con­crete. None the less, play­ers will have to wait until 2023 for the next E3 event.