E3 to Return June 2023 Produced by ReedPop

The world's premier video game convention, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (aka E3), will finally make its return in June 2023. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) announced a partnership with ReedPop to produce the revival of the show as an in-person event.

This will be the first in-person E3 since 2019. E3 2020 was canceled for a number of reasons, including the pandemic. E3 2021 was an online-only, virtual event. E3 was not held in 2022.

ReedPop is the production company that has also produced PAX, New York Comic-Con, and Star Wars Celebration. It has also produced other pop culture events, so ReedPop appears well-suited to reunite the global video game industry events. According to the official press release, the new E3 will feature "titanic AAA reveals, earth-shaking world premieres, and exclusive access to the future of video games."

Additionally, E3 2023 is scheduled to feature publishers, developers, journalists, content creators, manufacturers, buyers, and licensors from across the interactive entertainment industry. ReedPop and ESA are also promising that the digital showcases and in-person consumer components from past E3 events will return next year.

REEDPOP TO PRODUCE REVIVAL OF E3 AS AN IN-PERSON EVENT IN 2023

Speaking on the announcement, ReedPop President Lance Fensterman stated, "It is a tremendous honor and privilege for ReedPop to take on the responsibility of bringing E3 back in 2023." He continued, "With the support and endorsement of the ESA, we're going to build a world-class event to serve the global gaming industry in new and broader ways than we already do at ReedPop through our portfolio of world-leading events, and web sites."

Meanwhile, ReedPop Global VP of Gaming Kyle Marsden-Kish will serve as the lead of the company's newly formed E3 team, as well as his global gaming live event tasks. He stated, "For years, we’ve listened, heard, and studied the global gaming community’s feedback. E3 2023 will be recognizably epic—a return to form that honors what’s always worked—while reshaping what didn’t and setting a new benchmark for video game expos in 2023 and beyond."

Regarding the announcement, ESA President and CEO Stanley Pierre-Louis added, "We are thrilled to bring back E3 as an in-person event with ReedPop, a global leader in producing pop culture events." He went on, "The past three years have confirmed that E3 convenes our industry like no other event. ReedPop brings world-class talent and a keen understanding of the video game industry, which will serve to enhance the E3 experience for years to come."

The announcement mentioned that E3 2023 will have a "streamlined and secure media registration." In 2019, the personal information of over 2,000 registered journalists for E3 was leaked online.

ReedPop and ESA will announce confirmed exhibitors, hotel information, travel guides, event schedules, and more in the coming months.

It will be interesting to see what game companies return for E3 and which ones don't. In the past several years, many companies have simply opted to have their own tailored game showcases or online livestreams, which arguably started to make E3 less relevant. Not to mention creating booth experiences and transporting game developers to Los Angeles is expensive.

That said, ReedPop is an experienced entertainment event organizer, and the company has experience putting on major shows like this with major companies present. It will be interesting to see how this pans out.

Here's a look back at the last live E3 in 2019 with The Elden Ring reveal trailer: