Who's in? Who's out? IGN reached out to a number of major publishers ahead of publication to ask if they were able to confirm E3 attendance this year; or, where applicable, their plans for satellite events around E3. Those that did not respond in time for publication included EA, Square Enix, Embracer Group, Activision Blizzard, Epic Games, Take-Two, and Warner Bros. Games. IGN understands that more publishers plan to skip E3, but that they have yet to make a formal announcement.
Of those that did respond, Sega confirmed to IGN that it would not be attending the show after all, saying in a statement, "After careful consideration, we have decided not to participate in E3 2023 as an exhibitor. We look forward to sharing more information on announced and unannounced projects in the future."
Bandai Namco declined to provide an update on E3, but did confirm it would be attending Play Days. Tencent confirmed through a spokesperson that Level Infinite would not be attending E3 2023, but that it had participated in Play Days in 2022 and found it to be an ideal experience for showcasing our games to the media.
Devolver Digital, which has historically never officially attended E3 but has multiple years running set up shot in an adjacent parking lot, provided the following:
While we always root for the success of any industry gathering that promotes great games, we have never officially attended E3 and do not plan to do so this year unfortunately. We will also confirm we will not be hosting satellite events this year in Los Angeles, but look forward to returning to our beloved parking lot to do so if the opportunity arises for a future LACC-based event. We are happy to report that we are well underway in the production of our annual Devolver Direct scheduled for June which we will share news about soon. With only two months to go before E3 2023 is scheduled in Los Angeles, the mood surrounding the show is a far cry from previous years. At a time when companies would normally be preparing to announce their major showcases and businesspeople, media, and the public would be booking travel, instead there is a pervasive question as to whether or not the show will happen at all. And if it does, those responsible for participating fear they may find themselves shackled to an expensive husk of a show as the rest of the industry moves on.