The Entertainment Software Association has revealed its plans for E3 2020, which be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center on June 9-11.
Tickets go on sale on Feb. 15. at 11 am ET and can be purchased here. Two different tiers of badges will be offered for this year’s show. Gamer Badges, which give the general public access to the expo on June 10-11, will cost $165 per attendee. The Premium Badge, which comes with “exclusive benefits” and gives you access to all three days of the convention, will set you back $995.
Confirming some of the rumors that have been floating around this year’s E3, the ESA outlined a “reimagined” version of the trade show that will “include new stage experiences, experiential zones, and live events” as well as feature “special guest gamers, celebrities, and digital programming on the show floor while connecting with global audiences through extended live streaming.”
The press release arrived just hours after E3’s own website accidentally leaked a list of publishers exhibiting at the show. The ESA has since confirmed that Xbox, Nintendo, Ubisoft, Bethesda Softworks, SEGA, Capcom, Square Enix, Take-Two Interactive, Bandai Namco, Warner Bros., “among others” will participate in E3 2020.
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Notably absent from the list is Sony, which will not be showcasing any PlayStation products at the trade show, a shocker considering the company is preparing to launch the PS5 later this year. (This could only be good news for the Xbox Series X, the Sony console’s major competitor, which is also due out in Holiday 2020.)
ESA also teased an “all-new floor experience that will be streamed to bring exclusive conversations with leading industry innovators and creators to attendees and fans worldwide.” Rumors sparked after an ESA presentation reportedly leaked online in late 2019 have also suggested that E3 2020 will have a bigger focus on influencers as well as “queuetainment,” which will allow companies to advertise to event-goers while they’re standing in line for demos. This will also allegedly allow the event to collect data on attendees. While the ESA didn’t directly reference “queuetainment” in its press release, it certainly seems that E3 2020 is veering in a different direction than trade shows past.
These potential changes have been met with pushback from at least one major game company. In January, Sony explained why it was skipping E3 2020 despite its impending next-gen console launch: ”We have great respect for the ESA as an organization, but we do not feel the vision of E3 2020 is the right venue for what we are focused on this year.”
Additionally, Geoff Keighley, creator and host of The Game Awards as well as the host of the yearly E3 Coliseum live stream event, announced that he would not participate in E3 2020: “Given what has been communicated about E3 so far, I just don’t feel comfortable participating this year,” Keighley told THR.
Stanley Pierre-Louis, president and CEO of the ESA, said of this year’s “reimagined” trade show: “We are working to make E3 2020 a more interactive and immersive experience with a show floor that will amplify our exhibitors, their innovations, and announcements.”
Most audience members will ultimately decide on the success or failure of E3 2020 by the quality of the games and hardware unveiled at the show. As far as that’s concerned, we don’t yet know what titles will be showcased at the expo, but we’ll keep you updated as we learn more.
John Saavedra is Games Editor at Den of Geek. Read more of his work here. Follow him on Twitter @johnsjr9.