Until 2021, the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles – known as E3 – was considered the most important gaming event of the year. For years, it was where major games were announced and presented to the world. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the trade fair was held exclusively online, and more and more studios opted to present their games themselves through short livestreams or videos. E3 lost its significance and became a loss-making venture.
Meanwhile, the Game Summer Fest The event took over the space at the beginning of June. However, it's less of a traditional trade fair and more of a series of individual shows. The organizers of E3, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), have now announced a new gaming event, which is scheduled to take place for the first time in 2026.
E3 becomes iicon
The new trade fair is called Interactive Innovation Conference and will be abbreviated as iicon The event will be abbreviated. A major difference from the last E3 is that it will be a purely industry event. Only invited guests will be admitted; there are apparently no plans for general ticket sales. In fact, E3 was structured very similarly from 1995 to 2016; only from 2017 onwards were spectators allowed.
The event is scheduled to take place for the first time from April 27th to 30th, 2026 at the Fontainebleau Resort in Las Vegas. It's a five-star hotel. Some participants have already been confirmed, and the selection looks quite promising:
- Amazon Games
- Disney, Electronic Arts
- Epic Games
- ecosystem
- Nintendo of America
- Sony Interactive Entertainment
- Square Enix
- Take-Two Interactive
- Ubisoft
- Warner Bros. Games
Whether the event will primarily be used to cultivate contacts and exchange ideas, or whether there will also be major announcements or similar events, is currently still open.
With the Summer Game Fest, the Game Awards, and Direct streams from Sony, Nintendo, and others, there are already several ways to showcase games. Whether there's still room for the Iicon remains to be seen.
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