EA boss Riccitiello "hates E3 like this"

By Robert Purchese Published 18 July, 2008

Ubisoft thinks it was "terrible" too.

Industry big cheeses have slammed the E3 Media & Business Summit and questioned its importance on the gaming calendar.

"I hate E3 like this," EA boss John Riccitiello told the San Francisco Chronicle.

"Either we need to go back to the old E3, or we'll have to have our own private events."

Ubisoft US boss Laurent Detoc was equally blunt.

"E3 this year is terrible. The world used to come to E3. Now it's like a pipe-fitters show in the basement," he declared.

Their feelings over the event that was downsized and moved out of May (and initially the LA Convention Centre) two years ago were echoed by Ubisoft VIP Alain Corre.

"It's one milestone in the communication of your products throughout the year, and it's important because it's the ramp-up for Christmas," Corre told GamesIndustry.biz. "[But] E3 here, mid-July, in the Convention Center in downtown LA - it's not appropriate I would say."

Texas governor Rick Perry delivered this year's keynote to less than 20 people in a 1000-seat venue.

Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto also feels the event is no longer the right place to show core games, but rather to get across broader concepts to a wider audience.

E3 was once stampeded by 60,000 pairs of feet but now is an invite-only affair for 5000 press attendees.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (36) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • bad09 #1 4 years ago

    He's right. Last year I only saw MS to be honest but it was just about passable. But this year, was terrible sales meetings and willy waving all round. Well I won't be too excited about E3 2009 that's for sure......

  • LazyDan #2 4 years ago

    See I think people forgot this year that E3 is still downsized. All the conferences were largely surprise free and mainly dull.

  • Bertie Verified Senior Staff Writer, Eurogamer.net #3 4 years ago

    "Now it's like a pipe-fitters show in the basement."

    :D

  • kangarootoo #4 4 years ago

    On the specific point mentioned, I think it is fair to assume that few people really give a rats ass what the governor of texas has to say about games development, so I'm not hugely surprised that his keynote was poorly attended.

  • dsmx #5 4 years ago

    We all knew that he old e3 was overblown and very expensive for publishers to attend but the spectacle of old e3 was amazing and I always enjoyed gamespots coverage of it as well.

  • MrChuckles #6 4 years ago

    Good, the less 'management' that get sent to E3 on jollies from my company, the better.

  • agparrot #7 4 years ago

    What is a pipe-fitters show in the basement like?

    I see the value of inviting the gaming press, and I suppose there must also be some value to all the investor-relations and corporate whatnot, but I guess what Darth Riccitiello means is that it isn't really an event about presenting games to gamers anymore.

    Really, if he and Ubiguy are serious about getting back to that, then they should all get together and sort it out. The politics and chaos of the old E3 attracted its fair share of criticism, but do we really want to break the whole thing into Ubidays or EADays or whatever?

    Too complicated to think about it right now. Maybe Leipzig and Tokyo will take up the slack.

  • bad09 #8 4 years ago

    "Well, at least they're complaining about it. Hopefully should mean something gets done, let's hope the next shake up actually involves some shaking..."

    ....or waggling in the case of Ninty.

    Sorry!

    / gets coat

  • M83J01P97 #9 4 years ago

    Well I hate EA, so what does that say about them huh?!

  • trfe #10 4 years ago

    Open it up to the public again!

  • GamesConnoisseur #11 4 years ago

    Look like to me the future is going to be private events which suits the big companies more, Sony, Nintendo and MS already have their events. For publishers like EA and Ubi, to have more control in the content, timing and delivery of the messages they want to get across without any other devs/titles highjacking the focuses off them.

    Good for us gamers? Dont think so, would certainly like to see old E3 back but the industry got too much expensive and important to be held ransom by the great unwashed masses giving their drunken thoughts on what makes a good or bad games!

  • Moz #12 4 years ago

    You say that but hasnt MS cancelled X08?

    And the Sony conference went fairly unnoticed.

    Will be interesting to see what the big 3 do at Leipzig.

  • sneetch #13 4 years ago

    Well, I reckon they're right, the spectacle has definitely gone. It was dull, dull, dull. I hope this means that Nintendo et al have more tricks up their sleeves for later on this year. Hope springs eternal.

    This E3 was like a big beige sandwich. Mmm.

  • makeamazing #14 4 years ago

    Why they dont have press days and public days is beyond me... I mean the public have to sit at home and check out the event on the internet.... stupid state of affairs. Serves them right!

  • login_name #15 4 years ago

    If I remember correctly, EA was a major supporter of downsizing E3 in the first place. I'm sure Ubi had something to say on the matter back then also.

  • Fodder #16 4 years ago

    It was certainly reported at the time that EA were the ones who caused the E3 downsizing. Was that not right, then? Or do they just not know what they want?

    [link url=http://www.gamesindus try.biz/articles/ea-leading-the-move-away-from-e3-claims-sen ior-source
    ]http://ww w.gamesindustry.biz/articles/ea...[/link]

    They really need to sort E3 out, or it'll end up like the pathetic ECTS/EGN debacle that left the UK with no video games trade show.
    Edited by 1 at 18/07/08 @ 19:08

  • PotajiTo #17 4 years ago

    PAX is going to be the next e3.

  • Feanor #18 4 years ago

    Some people will moan if their arse is on fire, and then moan if someone puts it out.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #19 4 years ago

    After the 2006 show it was him more so than anybody throwing his toys out of the pram over the supposed cost of staging E3

    I don't think John Riccitello was in change of EA at that point.

    To be honest, it'd probably be fine as it is, so long as they held it in May again. That way they'd be able to announce surprise new games we'd be playing at Christmas and everybody would be happy. Except the fans of companies who are perceived to have lost, but at least there might be a fight. ONE truly newsworthy announcement out of all three conferences? That's just poor.

  • Silvervein #20 4 years ago

    @GamesConnoisseur

    I think we should take the realistic view on the games 'industry'.
    They are not making games for themselves, nor are they Switzerland Banking Commitee.
    They make games for us, the, as you called it 'unwashed masses'. It would be a good thing if they remembered about it.Or be reminded about it, if they forgot. Average gamer doesn't give radrat's ass about suits and their pompous sales report. We are in it for the fun. And on the fun front, they don't deliver too much recently.

  • gaselite #21 4 years ago

    News trickles out during the year. Having one big convention isn't going to change the amount of gaming news you get in a year. Perhaps E3 is a bit bland at the moment, but in theory I prefer it like this, with invited press only attending, rather than a ~60,000 fanboy festival where you get people acting like children at press conferences. That's not what trade shows like this should be. I always found it a bit embarrassing to be honest.

  • Kropotkin #22 4 years ago

    Open it up to the public again!

    What do you mean, 'again'? It was never a public event in the first place! *sigh*

    People thought E3 was this consumer trade show when it never was yet somehow anyone and his dog that had a vague connection to the gaming industry could go to E3. This had people flooding to it on the pretense that they were there as it was the industry they worked in, which of course it wasn't. When these people did get there they were dissappointed at all the sales talk not understanding that E3 wasn't for consumers but for buyers and the media.

    To my mind if you want to go a video games show that is for the game player in mind go to PAX. It's created by gamers for gamers. yes its cliche but it is true. As for E3 going back to the 60,000 attendees I seriously doubt that will happen.
    Edited by 1 at 18/07/08 @ 23:14

  • autogunner #23 4 years ago

    only 20 people showed up for the keynote speech - ouch

  • [TR] #24 4 years ago

    "It's one milestone in the communication of your products throughout the year, and it's important because it's the ramp-up for Christmas," Corre told GamesIndustry.biz. "[But] E3 here, mid-July, in the Convention Center in downtown LA - it's not appropriate I would say."

    Maybe I should go read his whole statement, but if having something closer to Christmas in downtown LA isn't a better ramp-up to it, what is? Downtown North Pole E3 no later than January 10th?

    GamesConnoisseur got it right. These guys are at that point where they can almost grasp monopoly and are pushing in that direction, stomping on whoever is smaller than them for more control.
    And with such wide access to information by their public and so many means at their disposal to get it to them I don't see the point in complaining about this. It's not like they're forced to use E3 or any such convention.

  • penhalion #25 4 years ago

    As I've been saying since the change. We used to go there (developers) for feedback from real live gamers. The interaction with people who will actually be parting with money for the games was invaluable. There were far less crap and short games when the gamers were able to say to our faces that game x was too short or game y felt too hard etc. etc. Any scams with video footage were outed promptly by a less than impressed geek nation and good games that would otherwise have gone un-noticed were able to draw the appropriate crowds or generate word of mouth praise to help them float to the surface.

    Now it's all pandering to the press, who quite frankly were the most vocal about not wanting to mill about with the ordinary people. It now turns out that WE as developers don't much fancy milling about with the press! They give absolutely 0 useful feedback. Partly because they get everything for free so don't value anything and partly because there aren't 200,000 of them with actual un-jaded eyes able to just turn up and play our games for the first time. That initial reaction from a gamer used to give me a shiver (I kid you not). Seeing how real people reacted to your game gave you soo much feedback. Helped you tailor the games direction and ultimately made the games a heck of a lot better than the cookie cutter stuff we see today.


    Bring back the public spectacle party that was E3. After all we are making billions from the gamers. It's only fair we throw them a yearly party deserving of their support. For that matter we should be having the Olympia show back too.

  • ThePissartist #26 4 years ago

    This Riccitiello bloke is clearly (judging from this and the KOTOR MMO story) mental.
    Edited by 1 at 19/07/08 @ 09:27

  • alimokrane #27 4 years ago

    Werent publishers i.e. EA and Ubi included that were complaining about the old E3 costing them too much and now they come and slate what's lef of it ...... How ridiculous.

  • login_name #28 4 years ago

    @penhalion

    +1

    Couldn't agree more.

  • Dan234 #29 4 years ago

    Now they've got what they've wanted, that whining sound in the background you hear means they've just realised that if you get rid of the public (the gamers) and use it just to talk to the press, most news is going to tip heavily towards the console manufacturers instead of the games publishers/developers.

    And they're not brought down to earth either by the public telling them that such-and-such a game is shit, it's all driven by the marketing department so it's only going to get worse. Within a couple of years someone will announce a game where you win by picking up a controller and pressing a button (any one, it doesn't matter which one, as that way it makes it more accessible).

  • WinterSnowblind #30 4 years ago

    I thought it was EA, along with Sony who wanted the down scale?

  • MouzerMalti #31 4 years ago

    I was at E3 2007 for work, very little impressed. The Leipzig Games Convention was so much better.

  • Mashum #32 4 years ago

    Good, let the greasy PR goons and the suits have their independent shows.
    Let gamers go to PAX along with anyone from the industry who wants to get some feedback.
    Sounds like a better and more customer-centric (sorry) solution.

  • Xerx3s #33 4 years ago

    So, leipzig games conference then? Would be awesome as it's a stone throw distance for me. \0/


    EDIT: When is the LGC anyway?
    Edited by 2 at 21/07/08 @ 09:39

  • Xerx3s #34 4 years ago

    Cool, august 20th and tickets only cost 8,50! \0/

  • Kremlik Verified Co-Founder, Crash To Desktop #35 4 years ago

    I just find it funny with comments like 'EA said this and now they complain' when they fail to realise, 'EA' didn't say anything at all it's former head wanted this and that and the other... Now you see why he's now a fomer head, he fecked up in his dissison making, now Ric on the other hand has got his head on stright, he wants E3 given back to the players, good on him.

  • sneetch #36 4 years ago

    @SgtFrog

    "Microsoft "look we've got cover flow and Wii Avatars" "

    More Vista than Cover Flow, really. But you're right; shit E3.

    Funny though, why exactly isn't this the place for these announcements? I mean, I was trawling the games sites looking for information (and finding bugger all) all last week, I imagine most gamers who are aware of E3 were doing the same. I appreciate that they'd like to guage the "wow" factor from people who are there seeing it first hand and not from comment threads, which tend to contain a lot of knee jerk "omg this sux" or "lawl " bullshit but there's no reason they can't announce games or at least give some teasers there.