RIP — the ESA puts E3 down like Old Yeller | Kaser Focus
Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .
For my Gen Z and Alpha readers for whom older live-action Disney films may not be the required viewing it was for me: I’m very sorry to spoil one of the most meaningful and beloved animal films of all time, but it’s important. The Entertainment Software Association announced this week that it’s choosing not to revive E3, meaning the legendary conference is as dead as we’ve always joked it was. I’m not using the Old Yeller reference idly — a beloved creature, brought low by age and sickness, mercifully slain by those it once served? Yeah, I think you can see where my head’s at right now.
It’s been a very strange week. One of the first pieces of news we had was the bizarre conclusion of The Day Before’s saga. Four days after it launched, developer Fntastic suddenly declared the game to be a financial failure and said it was immediately closing. Players who were subjected to the game’s panoply of bugs and glitches are left scrambling to try and get refunds, while reportedly former Fntastic staff members are scrubbing their socials.
Other news from this week includes the cancelation of The Last of Us’s standalone multiplayer title, which had been in development for years; Netflix getting the GTA Trilogy, which looks surprisingly good on mobile; and several new feature delays (Spider Man 2’s New Game+ mode; Fallout 4’s next-gen update; Total War Warhammer 3’s DLC) as game publishers get ready to wrap the year up. All three console companies have also rolled out their year-in-review features, so everyone can look at how much gaming they’ve done this year and rejoice.
In personal news, I’m still hard at
Read more on venturebeat.com
