Even thoguh E3 isn't what it used to be it's quite sad to see the continued decline.

If it doesn't come back strong next year that could possibly be it.

Nintendo showed the way with the Directs, it's the effective way to go in this digital age.

Another initiative they had has not been followed or repeated since, and think they should give it another chance.
And that is to provide the actual demos and trials to the people at home, then everyone can make their own opinions on the titles.
In the end, videogames are an interactive media, and while watching a video can give you an idea of how it is, nothing beats actually playing it.

https://www.siliconera.com/nindieshome-lets-you-play-e3-demos-of-upcoming-wii-u-games-wherever-you-are/

I actually think this is how a digital E3 should be!
It just needs some effort on developers and partners with actual titles to play and not just cinematic reels.

You young folks wouldn't know it, but the long decline of the E3 began way back in 2007 when the organizers decided to drastically reduce its scope for some reason and remove a lot of things that made E3 fun and interesting.

Then it started to shrink from a top-tier trade exposition filled with journalists and guests from all over the world to something that had to beg developers to partake. Make no mistake, this has nothing to do with the internet or whatever. Even now there are fairs and exhibitions in other industries that are much bigger than E3.

I haven't cared about the E3 in a good decade. A bunch of 60 second long non gameplay clips of games coming out in a few years.... I much prefer State of Play or Directs... gameplay and release date this year.

Announcing games too early is just annoying, especially when it isn't ready to be announced. Metroid Prime 4 being a poster child.

As someone noted above, the E3 Business and Media Summit or whatever it was was the start of the decline. It also didn't help that the console makers were using E3 to promote non-gaming bullshit over actual games over that time period.

It also would have helped if E3 had actually been open to the public. All that pomp and circumstance for a trade-only event just seems like a waste in general. TGS was always more exciting to me.

So this was not an April's fool ?

2011 was about the last time I gave a crap about E3 as a whole. E3 is a shell of itself and not reinventing itself fast enough.

Eh I'd take that over Summer Games Fests and Directs/PS Showcase etc. E3 was a week of fun. Now its just watching a presentation of trailers, except we're drip fed through the summer months lol.

*Jeremy Clarkson voice* - "Oh no! So, anyway."