Surprise, Nintendo Isn't Hosting An E3 Press Conference This Year

I think it's safe to assume that they'll just have a big Direct like in previous years.

That to me is bad news. I'd say they mustn't have a great lineup besides a couple of heavy hitters. We'll see. Nintendo love to crow when things are going their way but by skipping a press conference it says they've got an overall mediocre show lined up. I actually can't remember their last great E3.

Edit: And what do I see in the related articles?

https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2017/03/reggie_fils-aime_promises_a_big_e3_for_nintendo_this_year

Oh Reggie, you liar!

Seriously!?! If there was anytime to do it the time is now. You have people in the palm of your hands from all these Switch sell outs. This must be like E3 2015 again, where y'all just repeat the same information...

I hate E3, so I'm all for this!

Given what happened with the Switch live presentation I think they will do better with something prerecorded.

Also, isn't it a bit odd to say what they won't be doing without any indication of what they will be doing?

Good. I hope they stick with the digital events. Those press conferences are always so cringe worthy.

I'm rather annoyed by this. I was hoping for information on cloud saves between two systems, or at least some way to back up my saves to move them to a second system. I own 2 systems but the 'tablet' is still in the box in its original wrapping until they actually make owning two worth while.

Bought the second one to get the joycons, a second grip, and a second dock and I've loved those. I want my wife to be able to enjoy Switch games while I take the other system to work without her losing all progress completely.

@chardir That was dreadful.

Prefer a digital direct with the treehouse events :3

@WillTheLion If they want to announce cloud saves that hardly needs an E3 press conference...

@chardir I thought that was a really good presentation. Mind if I ask why you didn't like it?
Edit: yeah they. Could announce them at any time, but E3 was a date for a possible likely reveal, now we're back to guessing in the dark again.

Oh also I love Nintendo Directs but they haven't promised a timeframe for the next direct so that's really why this news is disappointing.

@WillTheLion Well, aside from the really wonky translation, which would be less of an issue at E3. A bunch of game producers looking and sounding awkward on stage. Zero audience reaction (or maybe the reaction wasn't recorded). Video cues being missed. Way too much focus on counting ice cubes (which doesn't even relate to any actual games).

It was just a general amateurish feeling.

They will announce some other form of event, and I'm all for that.

Nintendo's really been picking up the mantle in making E3 about the games these later years, so I'm looking forward to this.

Aren't MS doing there own thing before E3 starts to,longs they show games who cares if it prerecorded.

Rumour has it that Nintendo are using their e3 floor space to hold an Animal Crossing themed bake sale, with entertainment provided by Miyamoto and his one man band, as well as Bill Trinen putting on a puppet show, which will be broadcast via Treehouse Live:D

I have only seen one digital event (thus my confusion about what was supposedly so atrocious about 2015 one), but it was 2014 and it was pretty awesome. I don't mind the format in the least, and it can roll on regardless of audience reactions unlike Suda's wrestling jokes or the Splatoon announcer's poses with their implied "insert ba-dum-tss here" pauses. Of course, Kimishima will probably not go for half as much acting as Iwata did, but if you're into this, then in Reggie we trust. XD

@Pod Like last year with all of their 1 "games"?

@SLIGEACH_EIRE having a Big E3 doesn't mean you have to have a floor presentation

Actually Reggie said they'd have playable games on the event and that's it. I expect a nice digital event and games to play on the floor. Fine by me

We really need a block/mute members option on this site...

The live shows, as exciting as they can be, do tend to drag in places. A Direct is a lot more punchy and a better use of time to squeeze in announcements. I'm sure it'll be fine.

@WillTheLion I'm sure they will still have announcements at E3, just not a press conference. I do think it's odd to say they won't do one without saying anything else though.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE
They played quite many games on stage at E3 last year. And why would the average user care if only one game was available on the floor, it's a trade show and not as such a general public event.

@Ichiban lol

@chardir
It's just to quell any speculation and misinformation on that account.

I'm glad there's no press conference, the January Switch was ok but would've been much better in a Direct/Digital Event type format.

I'm thinking Nintendo will return to the Digital Event format for E3 2017 and it'll be at least on par with 2014.

@nhSnork 2015 was bad because Nintendo had already revealed the vast majority of the games in previous Directs and most of the new games people felt were underwhelming (Animal Crossing Amiibo Festival, Mario Tennis Ultra Smash, Metroid Prime Federation Force). If say for example FE Fates, Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE and the pre-E3 Smash Direct content were kept for the main Digital event then reactions probably would've been more positive).

I'm fine with it. I've actually preferred the pacing of the Directs to the pressers.

There I was bragging to my mates how Nintendo will win E3...

@Neon_Blues you hate a show about new games and gaming products? Not to compare this to GDC or PAX or TGS etc but on its own merit what's the point of the hate?

No surprises here then. They'll probably go with a big direct as usual and have treehouse streaming over the 3 days. If we get lucky we may even get a Nintendo World Championships with Arms and Splatoon.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE I dont necessarily think that Nintendo need a live press conference to build hype in fact i usually find the mix of Direct and treehouse to be better than anything they did in the past.
Think back to previous live shows like the dreadful 2008 or even 2010 with the brokwn wiimote. Nothing about these shows where any better than the concise Directs they have. And as for good recent E3 shows, last year people where all agreed that Zelda stole the show hands down, and 2014s direct was fantastic.

Great I guess we will get a Nintendo direct showing Arms Splatoon 2,Sonic force an that new Super Mario game also Super Smash brothers deluxe an payday 2.

I think this could mean great things actually. Didn't Nintendo already confirm that they are creating a big floor space this year at E3? A Digital presentation + large floor space would indicate to me that they have either;

1) plenty of good games they are happy to show off

2) Are super confident in a small number of titles that they want to showcase, probably Mario Odyssey and something else.
Which was last year's strategy for BotW, and look how incredible that game turned out.

I'm hyped. If you severely limit your expectations, Nintendo generally won't disappoint. Except Federation Force. Oh, and Amiibo Festival. Never mind.

The live press events are almost always horendous anyways, and create negative PR. Digital means everything is under control. Sony, Microsoft and Ubisoft conferences are so bad it's embarrassing.

I was kinda hoping they had a big showcase press conference. So long as they bring out some epic surprises...say....New Metroid?

@HappyMaskedGuy haha I like your strategy! I try to adopt it in other areas of my life. Expect the worse but then things turn out OK and it's all good

I'm surprised people are surprised about this. They haven't done a staged conference in five years.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to it.

I was hoping Nintendo were going to change their E3 ways after the WiiU. They need to have a big press conference to keep the hype going for the Switch.

Digital Event then, okay, why the hell not.
As long as they don't repeat the Muppet thing as rumored - not because I dislike Muppets, but I want to see where they could go next - I'm in.
If they do another animated Digital Event with a Rick & Morty style, or a Groening-esque one, I won't complain.

Just show me games.

@WillTheLion the prerecorded digital event will be much better and packed full of info don't worry. We're all hopeful for a cloud save announcement and it may come at E3

No Nintendo just no, you cant get away with this, or it will leave a mark. This is just being lazy. U have to go all out this time.

What are Nintendo playing at? They need a "299" moment (something to wow the consumer and gain support from major publishers), not an "It's out there" moment (something that will only confuse and alienate consumers and publishers alike - look up the first E3 of 1995 and the Saturn vs PlayStation press conferences)

Don't care. Just show me the games and you'll be fine.

@Dev That's some flawed logic right there, pal. Just because one press conference was bad doesn't mean they all have to be. They could just have a more lively show and make it less awkward. American press are more excitable anyway, so there wouldn't be the awful crowd silences.

Look how well Sony's pressers go down. There's no reason Nintendo couldn't run one of the same quality aside from the obvious lack of new content and their own ineptitude.

Oh Nintendo, you never stop disappointing me...

Digital event is MUCH MUHC MCUH MHUC better idea than a stage presentation.

I can not stress how much better it is, so instead I will type the following haiku.

Digital event
Is the way to go today
Thank you Nintendo

@ThatNyteDaez there's an Ignore button on individual posts that then blocks everything from that user (though you will still see posts that reply to the users posts, which can be just as distracting)

surely it will be better than E3 2015. hopefully...
E3 2016 was even better than E3 2015, Despite not doing an Digital Event. had pliantly announcements their.

i wasn't shock of them skipping press conference again tho.

@chardir I think the audience reaction is a cultural thing, as most formal-ish events over there typically have "courteous" (which can be viewed as "disinterested" by other cultures) crowds who aren't as loud as a game convention or something similar. I experienced something similar at an event in Japan a couple of years ago. Quite a few local reporters and critics, all of whom were dead silent until the end.

That aside, I wish they'd throw us a bone at E3. Something exciting, please!

Remember E3 when they first revealed the Nintendo Wii for the first time and a big clip of upcoming games to show?

I remember it blowing everyone away............. I miss those days

Even with a new console, Nintendo have got nothing (again!).

Really disappointed. Nintendo has so much momentum, this was the year to return to doing a big stage show if there ever was one.

@Seioni it's more personal really, but I think E3 is stupid.

I hate the extravagant theatrics of whenever developers walk on stage. Lights flashing everywhere, music playing, the big auditorium. And all it does is just lead up to someone who'll show us just a short minute video of a game they're working on.

I don't hate the videos themselves, as Nintendo actually shows off gameplay, but the lead up and hype isn't necessary.

I also hate how the demos of games are kept exclusively to the show floor. If Nintendo (as well as anyone else) went through the trouble of creating a playable demo, then why not release it the public?

I also don't understand why people spend so much money to go to this event. They spend hundreds of dollars for what? To see a developer for a few minutes, and play a couple of demos? It baffles me.

Developers should just spend all that money, time, and effort, in finishing up their games.

Maybe it's because I only care about Nintendo, and don't care about the others at all, but this is just how I see it. Waste of time and money for everyone.

I'm not surprised at all. They love their Directs. But keep in mind they reserved a big area and they always bring surprises to E3.

E3 is a junk, pompous event. The press conferences are obnoxious, horribly staged briefings with cheap music and celebrities. Nintendo doesn't need it, and they haven't for the last five years. What Nintendo needs to do is continue this streak and maintain consumer enthusiasm, and a digital event streamed directly to the Switch is more lucrative and straightforward.

For me anyways, I don't see what the big deal is. I don't go to E3 and there for all of it is a digital event.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE I disagree. There was no press conference in 2014, but that was a great E3 for Nintendo.

I find it a shame, as from the October 2016 trailer, to the January 2017 reveal, to the March 2017 launch, to the current day, that Nintendo have had people eating out of the palm of their hands. Nintendo and Switch have been the buzzwords for months now in the entire gaming community, and they are at the centre of attention so to speak, and in a positive way (which is why I still think the March release was a fantastic idea); so why they do not strike now with everything they have whilst they are sh*t hot, as a fan, is a mystery to me.

They could show off the console all over again, all the games that are already out, all the 2017 tities, and even ones that are still years away yet.......just throw everything you have into it to more people on board.

However, I say that as a Nintendo FAN. From a business perspective; I am self employed, and I do not expect anyone to tell me how to run my business, so I am not going to tell a multi billion dollar company how to run theirs.

In their own way, they must know what they are doing and what they think will work, and what they can afford (literally) to bring to the table at E3. Most said the January reveal and March release was a stupid idea and look how that played out for them.

Regardless of their business attitude at times, they still manage to make money, even if it is not as much as the previous year, or their projections, or even as much as we like to think they could make.

I look forward to whatever it is they show off regardless

On a side note I have just ordered my Switch a few minutes ago, with Mario Kart 8, Bomberman and a Pro Controller all for £400 which I was quite pleased with lol

I don't really care honestly. They just better have a million games in the works (third parties and Nintendo heavy hitters). If it is anything like E3 2015, I will weep in the corner for weeks.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE - Honestly, do you miss the awkward stage show press events?

Nintendo have generated more positive buzz with all of us anticipating their pre-produced E3 directs that communicate the same message without some corporate guys nervously sweating and appearing to look like freakish children next to amazonian Aisha Tyler, or flailing around with a Wii-mote like an interpretive dancer being electrocuted.

Just because "that's how it's been done" for the most part doesn't mean it can't change, or that Nintendo hasn't actually found a better way to communicate the same message.

Nintendo will have a big presence at E3 like they always do, and it will be more about demos and fun events than suits on a stage showing us pre-rendered trailers of games to come out in 2019.

Personally, I hate the over the top 'forced' presentations - they don't really work, ever (not just Nintendo but all publishers). We want the announcements, we want the trailers, we want to see games in peoples hands. I just get bored of hearing from publishers how amazing a game released in 2 years will be.

If Nintendo opt to do a different style and still announce good content, that is all that matters.

Stupid move, this could've shown a lot of people that Nintendo is back in a big way. Instead it reminds us of the Wii U.

Glad to hear no live stage show. They are awkward and hardly well done by any of the gaming companies. Give me an hour long entertaining Direct and then hours of sometimes awkward treehouse segments and I'll be happy.

Good news as far as I'm concerned. Live presentations always have cringe worthy moments, from Nintendo or otherwise. The digital event is the way to go.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE 2014 was a great show. We had Bayonetta 2,Wooly World, Captain Toad, XCX, Mario Maker, Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, the first look at Zelda and the big surprise of Splatoon. As far as E3 shows go that was as good as it gets and the general consensus was Nintendo 'won" that E3. The last 2 years haven't been great but that's more to do with the fate of the Wii U. There's no reason why this year won't be up there with 2014.

They don't need a press conference these days... let the games speak for themselves. But hope for a few unannounced titles... Then follow up with a direct or two.

@chardir Not at all. Companies make announcements like this to set expectations for their eventual plans.

@Timppis Beautiful, just beautiful.

@EternalDragonX Because Sony and Microsoft conferences are SO great.

Digital limits damage. Like the poop on your toothpaste. Yikes!

I'm sure that the terrible quality of their live Switch event played a big part in this decision. It is much easier to control pacing with a Direct. Besides, big reveals will have just as much impact in a Direct as they would on a big stage.

E3 2017 Summary;

1) Mario Odyssey showcase

2) Splatoon 2 showcase

3) Minor teaser for whatever the heck Retro are working on.

4) Pokémon Switch.

5) Bayonetta: Bewitched Edition for Switch

End.

We still get the news, I still watch this conferences online so what is the difference. I just want good content coming.

I love the Nintendo E3 digital events. Much better format.

@RatKing64 digital limits damage especially when the vast majority of key players don't speak English (at least to a high level)

Disappointed, but not surprised. I favour the live press conferences to the prerecorded Directs at E3.

As long as they have plenty of exciting reveals, then I'm sure that I'll still be happy with what they show.

God no, never again. The Switch live presentation was a painful reminder of how bad past E3 presentations were. I'm glad to see them not revert to that painfully awkward pageantry.

Awesome news! I like the digital event approach much better.

Nintendo always do their own thing and that what makes them special, as long as there's plenty of big Switch announcements I'll be happy.

Digital events are better. They can plan them, and make them truly worthwhile. On the other hand, big press conferences are a thing of the past now, even Sony's (who is king in that are) presentation last year was so dreadfully slow, and filled with so much pretty talk that I preferred to just read a summary.
Just give me the info I want - games, and new services. Leave the Pr talk for investors.

I'm okay with the digital event. It's all about the games for 30 minutes. I can take a break, watch it, and get on with the rest of my day.

If it ain't broke. Nintendo does better with Digital Events than live stage shows.
The pros: They can be pre-recorded. No worrying about mishaps such as controller getting disconnected or the battery running dead in the middle of a presentation. No interference from other devices during the presentation. No annoying commentary or terrible live action gameplay that doesn't synch with the video being shown.

The only con is it depends on the viewers internet connection.

Here is the recipe for Nintendo :
1. Keep calm and bombarded sony & microsoft by another Switch games future releases. Be a Silent killer.
2. Talk Less, Do More. Keep promoting Switch and the games. Embrace the customers.
3. Announce another colorful Switch to keep customers happy. Who want colorful Switch console instead just being Black only ?

One thing for Nintendo : Be a Silent Killer for both sony & microsoft. Hehehe.....

Good.

@sp_initiate-001
So, the digital presentation was like the presentation about Joy Cons last January before ?
Use a little bit computer editing to show the magic of color transformation of Grey Joy Cons became Neon Joy Cons.

@HappyMaskedGuy
Eh... Miitopia date release itself has been already announced from New 2DS XL announcement, right ?
Psst... 28 July 2017.

Phooey

@Ichiban
I would unironically applaud them for doing this.

Nintendo has not done a traditional presser in several years.
Generally, its presentation (Direct) and demonstration (Treehouse) approach has been well-received. So I am not sure why people are thinking it would revert back.

The e3 press conference is almost passe'. People want announcements and they want information. You can do that any time in many different formats. The big thing about e3 is getting people (especially but now not exclusively press people) a chance to play the games and talk to people about the games. And that will still be done.

I never liked E3 anyway

How is this news to anyone? I think they've well proven by now that their Digital Event / Treehouse live stream format works just as well, if not even better, than a live press conference.

I for one welcome our Digital Event overlords. They allow for a more comfortable and polished event that tells use everything that a live press event would, but allows for more fun skits and the use of animation, etc. Without the Digital Event we would never have had the classic moment of Reggie burning a man alive for the mear mention of Mother 3.

No live press conference?!

How else am I going to see awkward translation fails, flub of lines, awkward crowd silence/applauses, controller/video fails and endless pie charts of sales?

Guess I'm gonna have to go to Microsoft or Sony for that.

tsk tsk Nintendo never does anything right.

@AlexSora89 "If they do another animated Digital Event"

I think their best bet is a CG style NDE like the SSB one but have Trinnen vs Miyamoto in either ARMS or Splatoon 2. ARMS might work better for 1 on 1 fighting but if they spent the money for Miyamoto running around a Spaltoon arena decked out in gear turning into a squid when he dove into the ink, well that's just gold right there. And splatting Reggie until he pops would make everyone's day. It would be a great opening.

I'm all for an NDE over a live event, but they haven't said NDE yet. That's my only concern, as the Treehouse works for games that we want to see more of, but they need a 45 minute NDE on Youtube for people to watch at a set time and then whenever they want after. Treehouse doesn't work well for that. So fingers crossed.

Good, and unsurprising.

Also, the format has literally zero bearing on what game announcements they have and how many. This "oh Nintendo is doing a digital presentation? They must not have anything to show" claim makes zero sense.

How shocking!
Seriously though, they could just turn the whole E3 into a digital event as most gamers are watching it at home rather than being there themselves.

I imagine a breathtaking trailer for a new Metroid game! Dark atmosphere and planets to explore.. yesss please!

Let's hope this will be as great as E3 2014 and not as bad as E3 2015

I just don't get how this is a surprise to some people. The point of the press conference, life on stage, is unveiling something new and big, and to present key executives primarily for the investors and partners. Always has been. What Nintendo has proven again and again is that their very Japanese structure makes this very difficult. Most of the key people don't speak any English at all....for a trade show in L.A. So you end up with awkward translations, bad translations, and endless confusion. Iwata was a rock star and barely pulled it off.

For the fans, they're reaching a large international audience, and a stage presentation covers everything either in English, or in slow, awkward, translated Japanese. Either the English speakers or the Japanese speakers get a bad experience, and information gets confused.

Sony and MS don't have this problem because at this point their executives are mostly Westerners, Kaz Hirai speaks English with almost a domestic American accent these days, and MS just doesn't care about Japan because Japan doesn't care about them.

Plus we already GOT a Nintendo stage show this year, and it was every bit as awkward and confusing as everything I said above, but we got one and it was fun enough. No need to relive the horror of Travis Touchdown and "Splatoon................2. Again, that's Splatoon............2" again in June. But at least that was on home turf in Tokyo so the translation can be forgiven more than an event in L.A. mostly for American media.

So they'll do a digital event, or on the floor coverage, or whatever. They'll probably spend too much time talking about New 2DS and the great lineup for 3DS. It can be a big E3 on content and coverage. Maybe they'll do the big direct/DE that steals headlines anyway, or maybe they'll do some zany stunt on the floor. They have a few games we know about already that they could spend a lot of time covering and still have a big E3 (XC2, SMT, Odyssey, FE:W, FE'18, plus 3DS stuff, and too much Splatoon coverage.)

Pretty much as expected so far.

@Joestar- 2014 was good because it stole the games of 15 and 16. 15 was actually good, the internet just imploded because it expected Metroid and didn't get it and the year-round directs and prior E3 removed all surprises. 16 was kind of dismal. Fun but dismal, even with the GOAT game.

@rjejr The headliner will be Mario Odyssey, so the "main event" if comparing to the Smash CG or the Starfox muppets would have to be Mario. Arms releases DURING E3 week (the day after, technically but there's still wrap-up events) so we can bet they'll spend a lot of time on that for the "available on Friday!" angle, but Mario will remain the headliner.

Not surprised but honestly, I much prefer the pre-recorded Directs/Digital Events for E3. It worked for them in 2013 and especially 2014. 2015...not so much. In either case, there's definitely gonna be some sort of digital presentation this year, and those are usually sleek and really well produced. I'm not worried.

@AlexSora89 Rick and Morty!!!!!

Let's see... the last E3 Nintendo presented live at (alongside the other 2 big wigs) was 2012. Since then, and skipping E3, let's also chart Nintendo's market share trends during that time.

Coincidence? I think not.

Bad move again by Nintendo, which also seems to hint towards minimal 3rd party support for Switch this upcoming year.

@NEStalgia excuses excuses excuses. But I'll only tear through one of them for now:

"What Nintendo has proven again and again is that their very Japanese structure makes this very difficult. Most of the key people don't speak any English at all....for a trade show in L.A. So you end up with awkward translations, bad translations, and endless confusion."

Um, Bill Trinen and Reggie say "hi".

It was to be expected. Hopefully they have a digital event again (and treehouse sessions) with some good stuff!

@gatorboi352 Trinnen's title is basically the head of marketing for the NA region. Reggie basically is head of the NA sales office. Yes he's running/organizing the E3 itinerary as Kimishima noted, but the stage show is for the serious corporate level execs, not field office middle management. Hedge fund managers don't show up to listen to some field office division head prattle on in third person about corporate initiatives he knows nothing about. They do the investor/industry stuff in person there still, but behind closed doors in a business setting rather than theatrical.

Reggie's been on stage, but only as the "here's Reggie for more details" from Iwata. And Reggie was there mostly for the consumer part of the show, not the part the industry/finance guys are there for that Iwata did himself.

The only point of stage shows is to relate new information simultaneously to the industry/finance guys, press, and consumers. That's why the Switch release was a stage show. If you can do investor stuff in one show and consumer/press stuff in another, why not? Even the stage shows more and more feature people on stage watching the big screen for pre-recorded segments. Well, Ubisoft has dancing bears. But they're French.

What would a 2017 June stage show look like? Reggie on stage with a laser pointer showing pie charts of sales trajectory for Switch and growth potential for N2DSXL? Or Reggie looking up trying to look interested at trailers for games he's already seen 300 times while investors grumble in their chairs that this presentation has nothing of interest, where are the sales trajectory charts?!

I suppose we could have an epic Wii music overenthusiastic drummer moment for ARMS. But we could get that either pre-recorded or in the Treehouse coverage without a $100,000 an hour stage.

I'm just not sure why everyone (that just got a stage show) wants a stage show, when the Digital Events got just as much media attention, had less derpy moments than any stage show, and reveal the same content without having to check twitter in an hour for a translation of what they were talking about.

If there were no Treehouse, I'd miss live moments, but we get live moments for days, including Miyamoto interviews and roundtables. You don't get that at stage shows. I think people are conflating "no stage show" with "no digital event" like last year when they had no console to sell at all

@Desy64
"Y-y-y'know Morty, this is a Nintendo Switch Morty, it-it-it's a cool new console because you can ta-URP-'ake it with you on the go, and it can play Zelda, which is cool because it's big, and open world, like that crap thing you like."
"Like Skyrim, Rick?"
"Yeah, Skyrim Morty, that's, er, that's the idea, 'cept it doesn't lock up because Bethesda's not be-URP-hind it."

ALTERNATE COMMENT:

@rjejr
Maybe one with Marvel characters this time around?
Which brings to mind that us Italians got lucky once again with a Marvel movie, we saw Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 in advance. Suffice to say, it's every bit as good as the first and, well, just one spoiler - Nebula is coming for you...

@AlexSora89 ahahahahah!

You, sir, you made my day

@AlexSora89 I can't see Nintneod promoting Marvel, Switch isn't even listed for MvC Infinite.

And lucky you I knew about Nebula.
You into all the MCU movies? My kid and I were discussing if Hela in the upcoming Thor Ragnarok would be the stand-in for Death in the Avengers Infinity movies. My kid had just finished reading my Infinity Gauntlet comics I got when they first released. I saved all my comics and now my kids actually get to read them.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE why does no press conference mean no big showing?

show floor, treehouse, probably demos at BB again, clearly a Nintendo Direct, I don't think that's anything to scoff at, or not having a press conference means they have nothing.

I remember that BIG Sony explosive press conference that made everyone say Sony "won" E3 (2015), it was flashy sure, but still some of the games shown or talked about are STILL NOT OUT (and probably won't be out this year either), so it's a balance of reality vs hype. How much do we talk about, when are these games actually coming, timing is everything.

I really hope Nintendo brings it this year, but I want a realistic presentation as well. I know what will get me to buy a Switch, I'm already excited for it, and it's marked on my Calendar, and e3 hasn't even passed yet.
For my PS4, I was excited by E3 2015, but we're still left with a lot of empty promises from Sony. Sure I finally dove in after the slim and FFXV were released (late OCT 2016), but had it not been for those things I'd still be waiting.

Say it with me folks: "press conferences are awkward and the slowest, least effective means for sharing game company announcements"

There. Done. Nintendo has proved it over and over. Where did some of the biggest buzz originate from during last year's E3? This year's potential game of the year, Zelda Breath of the Wild. No press conference. Total success.

Press conferences are for retailers. They've changed over the years to try and do double duty as hype for fans, but it's only for the most dedicated people and most of them are very, very hard to sit through.

I think the live event (which was done in the press conference style) for Switch suggests that Iwata had much to do with the successful live events of the past.

The Treehouse stuff also needs some work, but at least you get many details and a feel for the games through seeing the games get played. So, that live stuff has potential to grow.

Very few companies get those live stage show presentations right, keeping them tight while making them interesting. Apple does pretty good. Google has gotten better, lately. Nintendo has had a few in the past. Sony and Microsoft have recently morphed from these weird celebrations of visceral bloody acts of violence into parading out celebrities.

Drop them. Nicely produced video and events with plenty of opportunities to see gameplay and to let the press PLAY the games are much, much better.

I hate digital events.

"They're awkward and hard to sit through."

What are all you people? Children? Press conferences were never "awkward" and "hard to sit through".

Of course the majority prefers the pretty animations and cutesy jingles, with Reggie hosting the entire thing. If you ask me, THOSE are awkward and hard to sit through. It feels like you're watching a kid's show!

And It's only press conferences that give birth to really cool stuff like this:

Not to mention...

That is amazing. No pre-recorded, edited stream could ever provide that sense of mystery and really being there. Ever.

I could go on. But I don't feel like it.

They don't need too. Let the Quality speak for itself. Heck we get up too 6 Nintendo Directs per year. They are constantly feeding us information.

I'm not concerned and I think it's nutty for anyone to think their E3 is going to be lame just because they're not doing a live show. I work at SIGGRAPH every year (look it up, it's no slouch of a show for graphics) and Pixar didn't have a booth last year... first time ever. Does that mean they are having a bad year?!?! Haha. Nope, they did a private industry party and blew the doors of a ton of great stuff.

I think Nintendo has found a great niche with these directs and they're going this route from now on. Sometimes you pessimists read into stuff way too much!

@gatorboi352 There is absolutely no correlation between having live E3 press conferences and market share. The Wii U failed because it was the WiiU, not because Nintendo chose to skip E3. No amount of live E3 press conferences could have saved the Wii U from its grim fate.

Doesn't surprise me as much, Nintendo killed off Space World (their own conventional event), abandoned Tokyo Game Show, and nowadays tend to leave E3. I'm sure whatever super secret things they had in store will forever be locked in digital format.

@westman98 yeah sure thing k sounds good.

@gatorboi352 k cool nice talkin to ya

E3 is over rated anyway, I don't watch any of the conferences anymore, I just get the news as its released online. I think the key thing most of you forget is the E3 was not a show intended for the public. The only reason we get to see it is because news sites stream it. The average consumer doesent even know what it is and that's who Nintendo needs to win over. All of us already know if we want a Nintendo system or not. The people that do watch E3 press conferences are the same people that read these websites. So not having an E3 conference changes nothing. I think anymore it's a huge waste of money for the companies, all 3 of them. Most of is can only get the information online. So who cares if it's by a conference or a Direct.

Why not? They had a live Switch announcement and it went fine. Apart from one crappy translator...

Everyone is quick to say "W-Well yeah but E3 sucks anyway" when Nintendo isn't going, but if they DID announce that they will have a stage show everyone would be hyped beyond comprehension saying "OMG NINTENDO IS BUSTING OUT THE BIG GUNS THIS YEAR!"

I don't mind the digital events, but I do miss the days of big reveals and crowd reactions... Well, okay, I miss big Nintendo reveals and crowd reactions, because Sony still delivered during that E3 when they showed off the FFVII remake and Shenmue III.

Again, I think the digital events work well for what they set out to accomplish, but to me, this just says that this E3 will be par for the course. A big reveal or two and a bunch of info on games we already know about... This news just gives me a gut feeling that we all need to start lowering our expectations, the sooner the better. Hopefully I'm wrong.

As long as they make their digital show decent, I'd be okay with this. Guess we will see.

@Gorlokk Those games that Sony tends to "deliver" is by getting Square Enix to reveal big games half a decade or more before they even release.

Final Fantasy VII remake directed by Nomura revealed in 2015 is an interesting reveal, but its release far off and they still haven't delivered on Kingdom Hearts 3 directed by Nomura which was revealed at Sony's 2013 E3 and the last game directed by Nomura to release was FFXV which was first shown at E3 2006 and released in 2016. The Last Guardian is a 1st party similar case to FFXV.

Microsoft on the otherhand reveals amazing looking games that they cancel(Fable Legends, Scalebound) and a cinematic trailer of a game the studio making it didn't know they were showing(Phantom Dust, also cancelled). I suppose you could argue those stage shows goads companies holding them into revealing games they really shouldn't, that they know they can't deliver on any time soon after reveal just for the sake of hype.

Comparatively even despite delays even breath of the wild launched less than 3 years after its reveal. I feel that Nintendo's approach to E3 is more reliable, that they'll mostly show games that are coming relatively soon and that I'd never be waiting half a decade to play. e.g. Nintendo said they've almost already finished developing Super Mario Odyssey, an incredibly hyped game that they've officially revealed the exact same year they're releasing it.

@HappyMaskedGuy "4) Pokémon Switch." Yeah, sure, buddy.

@Interneto We shall see

@rjejr
Between Thor Ragnarok and Spider-Man Homecoming, it's a good time to be a Marvel fan. Which is why, given the state of the Distinguished Competition's usual cinematic fare, I'm sad about DC fans everywhere - I can't bring myself to care about DC's Justice League assembling for the first time when the Avengers are about to do so for the third.

And if you recall my bookshelf showcase from a while ago in another post (just ask @ThanosReXXX in case), you know I've always been more of a Marvel guy to begin with. Thankfully in Italy the latest recollections of comics have been essential to my shelves - after a crossover-centric compilation, now we're getting a chronological series of reprints from the Silver Age, basically a cheap (ding ding ding) version of Marvel Masterworks.

@Desy64
"Y'know Morty, you oughta know E3 is gonna be big this time around Morty, what with Switch and leaks and stuff, I've seen another dimension where Nintendo beat all of its competitors but then went all 'this is for the players' and stopped caring about its userbase because they sold so many consoles at that point, and if you want to get lucky with your Jennifer, or Jessica, or Vanessa or whatever, y-y-y'oughta know Morty, that consoles aren't every-URP-thing in life Morty, there's also booze which is always a very important part of it and and and, most important, remember never to mix up Red Bull and whisky because it can get really, really messy Morty, I know we're not on adult swim now Morty but I have to say that I've watched my language more than--[Rick falls asleep]"

@rjejr
Wait a sec, force of habit got the better of me. I thought you were @ThanosReXXX for a second, that's why I put in that "Nebula is coming for you".
Only AlexSora89 can ruin his own jokes. >_<

I'd have thought a live stage show would have been the way to go this year. It seems strange to me that they've chosen not to come out all guns blazing and build on the early success of the switch.

It probably confirms more than anything that they really aren't going for that xb1 ps4 market and they probably think a lot of their consumer base wont be interested in an e3 stage show

It's funny to watch people argue about the necessity of having live E3 Press conferences when Nintendo JUST successfully launched a brand new platform outside of the E3 hype cycle.

@AlexSora89

Not surprised. Nintendo did this the last 2 years too. I'm still hyped though, gimme Metroid and F Zero!!!

@TheHumbleFellow

yeah i thought the same thing, Big e3 Direct with Short, to the point info, a lot better then the usual dribble at other e3 conferences.

@AlexSora89 Nebula coming for me? Ha! She can try, but I'll simply use my thumb and index finger to flick that pesky bug back to where she belongs... No silly blue bald girl is going to stand in my way. I made her, I can break her.

And since she's such a failure, I have no use for her anymore. I'll just use the gauntlet to annihilate her, rebuild her in her original, ginger form and send her back to The Doctor...

@ThanosReXXX
Speaking of which: in the original Infinity Gauntlet story, Nebula was a reanimated corpse until the Gauntlet's grasp turned her back into her beautiful former self. In the movie, this scene will turn her from a cyborg back into a blue-skinned Karen Gillian.

Calling it now.

@AlexSora89 Wanna bet your entire comics collection on that? Would be an easy way for me to improve my novice-level Italian...

By the way, you can skip the second i: it's Karen Gillan...

@ThanosReXXX
As one Italian song goes, "always risk, but never bet", so I'll pass on that offer
As for the name, well, this particular kind of misspelling is sadly a commonplace mistake on my part, so expect more similar screw-ups in my future comments...

@AlexSora89 That looks like sound advice.
I never bet either, so we're on the same page here. Comics-related pun intended...

By the way: good to see that you enjoyed the second Guardians movie. My only gripe with the cinematic version of this series is that they made Drax far too weak and too dumb compared to his comics-counterpart, but once I got over that in the first movie, I also thoroughly enjoyed it, so I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy the second one as well.

@ThanosReXXX
I dunno, movie-verse Drax is not "dumb" as much as it's a kindhearted, if only a bit Leeroy Jenkins-ish, lovable simpleton.
That scene of Mantis bawling her eyes out while touching Drax was pretty damn powerful.

@AlexSora89 Hey! No spoilers, haven't seen the second one yet.

And I honestly would say they have really made him dumb, what with the not understanding figures of speech and so on. Of course some stuff had to be changed for the movie, and in his case for comical effect, but nonetheless it's somewhat of a shame in my opinion.

A future fight between him and the Hulk could have been just as epic as in the comics, but as it stands, Movie-Drax is WAY too underpowered to even be considered a worthy opponent. In the comics, he would have probably beat Ronan to a pulp the first time they clashed...

@AlexSora89 P.S. I'm not nearly nerdy enough to know who the fuzz Leeroy Jenkins is, so I had to look that up. And now I can file it under "useless tidbits of information only good for conversations with WoW nerds"...

Which I don't play or am interested in, but I'm sure you already got that...

@ThanosReXXX
You mean the guy who can't handle the concept of duck face without being literal about it?

But fear not (well, the scene I mentioned is not that much of a spoiler...), Drax is given enough dignity to come off as a noble "dumb muscle" type. I mean, dumb-ish, but not dumb.

And yeah, I know next to nothing about WoW, but Leeroy Jenkins is pretty much a character archetype by now.

@AlexSora89 Mjeh... seems they made him like that afterwards. Remember: you're talking to a silver and golden age comics fan/reader here. I stopped reading/collecting around 15 years ago, or maybe even more, so all these modern story lines, and often worse art styles don't mean jack sh** to me.

THIS is the REAL Drax:

He isn't called The Destroyer for no reason...

@AlexSora89 Interesting article here on the change from real Drax to movie Drax:
https://www.gabbinggeek.com/2015/04/07/whatever-happened-to-drax-the-destroyer/

@ThanosReXXX
I know about older Drax, what with me having read the older Infinity stories by Jim Starlin. But the Dave Bautista version isn't that much of an insult (and, besides, even the older one was reckless to begin with).
Now if you can excuse me, I'm still distraught from having seen the Richard Gere version of the Hachiko movie - a decision I'm very much regretting - and I need to sleep for the remainder of the night. See you tomorrow, mad titan!

Who cares about live e3 presentations besides those at e3 themselves? It ends up being the same result as you just watch a stream anyway. I'd rather Sony, Microsoft and well everyone did the same thing, it woould take a lot of cringe out of their presentations.

Show your video live if you want audience reaction then open your floor. Cuts the crap.

@AlexSora89 Ah, that one...
If you would have told me you planned to watch that, I would have been able to warn you that only the dog is worth watching...

Think we might have to drop the Drax topic though, since we're not going to agree. In my opinion anyone somewhat familiar with the character and his story line must surely know how many mistakes/changes the movie version has made. And as said before, he's just too weak. He's supposed to be Thanos's nemesis, and right now, he's just a filler.

@AlexSora89 "it's a good time to be a Marvel fan"

Well I've always felt it was a good time to be a Marvel fan, but now it's a good time to be a movie fan as well. I kind of feel bad for all of those people who can't enjoy the movies b/c they don't match up exactly w/ the comics. Oh wait, no I don't, they're all imbeciles. Felt that way about all the hardcore Tolkien fans as well.

@aaronsullivan "Nicely produced video and events"

I agree they dont' need live events, but I'm not a fan of Treehouse and I will be annoyed if they dont' have a ND at E3. Maybe they felt focusing on Zelda was the way to go last year, seems to have worked, but Switch is going into it's first holiday, then at least need a NDE to show the world, not everybody wants to sit through 6 hours of Treehouse.

A 3 hour Spaltoon 2 tournament might get watched by quite a few people. I think ARMS would get boring after an hour. 45 minutes of multiple game trailers is my sweet spot.

@ThanosReXXX
Insta-dropped! And that dog was... dammit, I cried throughout the whole movie. Even Richard Gere's delivery made me cry at points.
"Best movie I'll never see again."

@rjejr
It's always been a good time except for the whole saga from Avengers Disassembled up until Siege. That's one era of Marvel Comics I'd rather forget about. And don't even get me started on One More Day!

@AlexSora89 And don't forget that horrible alternate Spider-man story line with Harry Osborne wooing Gwen Stacy...

Another one for the vaults of Comic Book Hell...

@rjejr "I kind of feel bad for all of those people who can't enjoy the movies b/c they don't match up exactly w/ the comics."

Ahem.... Oh, well... on this very day, I'll do my best to not be too offended...

Yay, me!

@ThanosReXXX
You mean the one with Harry or the one with Norman Osborn?
Because the latter had that one scene with him and Gwen and... no, just no.

@AlexSora89 The "just no" one, indeed. I can't even say the name of that series without thinking about how badly they screwed that one up...
EDIT:
Ah, I see I made the mistake by typing "Harry". Sorry for the confusion...

@ThanosReXXX
How could anyone not love that face?

@rjejr Yep, Nintendo Directs can be great and I like this new bulleted list rapid fire announcement thing in the latest direct. It means they are aware of pacing which has been a problem in the past.

I think the divide of tournaments for eSports people and those competitive games, Treehouse for those who need to see extensive gameplay footage to be convinced of anything and interviews, and the Nintendo Direct for the wider audience and maximum hype efficiency... I think it's a good spread. I don't even see where live press conference would fit in anymore or what the purpose would even be.

If there is one thing I might break apart, it might be conversations with Nintendo developers. Maybe break that Treehouse presentation into two halves more cleanly. Sometimes the interview/gameplay thing gets unwieldy when combined and people who tune in seem to get annoyed when one gets too much play over the other.

Do you think Iwata was hands-on with those public facing events? I think he was. Especially apparent in the recent financial meetings where Iwata would sprinkle some fun announcements in them, and Kimishima separated it out. I think Iwata liked participating in the fun of reveals and probably had a good amount of influence on how they went. Nintendo Direct clearly seemed to be his creation and it was such a refreshing contrast to what the others were doing. When his health seriously deteriorated we had the big Federation Force reveal debacle, for instance.

Nintendo has had some work to catch back up and figure out how to run these things without him, I'm guessing.

@AlexSora89 As long as "anyone" can be translated as: "only a mother", we're good.

Man, nightmares all over again, thank you very, VERY much. And on my annual day, no less...

@aaronsullivan ND was Iwatas thing, I would have been OK if they dropped the name, but at least nobody is really trying to be Iwata and say "Please understand." That bullet list kind of made it it's own thing. For the record I don't like the bullet list, I find it too distracting, I don't want to know what's coming up next, I want to focus on the now. They can easily do rapid fire w/o the list, just say "Up next" instead. Everybody else liked it though so I defer.

@ThanosReXXX Yeah, I can imagine you as one of those guys who uses the phrase "not faithful to the source material" and being annoyed about it.

I was annoyed at first that the 2nd and 3rd Hobbit movies don't actually appear at all in the book, the 1970s cartoon is a superior translation, but I was able to enjoy them for what they were, fun movies.

They can never do Infinity Gauntlet justice, even after seeing the great special effects in Dr. Strange, but I plan on enjoying the films for what they are, films "based upon" the comics.

@rjejr So, this is the birthday present you give me, another bad assumption?

Actually, all the smileys should tell you I was mostly joking/being sarcastic. I know full well that not every written story can be translated 1:1 to the silver screen, especially not from more elaborate novels. And as shown in other series, such as Game of Thrones, even adding stuff sometimes also works quite well without taking away from the story as a whole. And I say this as someone who has read all the books long before there was ever a TV show...

Oh, and I simply LOVED The Lord of the Rings. Seen all three of them about five or six times now, and they still get to me, even though I also read that book as well, but I'm really not such a "to-the-letter" type as you might expect me to be.

Having said that, I do feel that with the DC and Marvel comics movies, it should be quite a bit easier to stay true to the source material, since it's definitely not rocket science there, story-wise.

But maybe actually because of the reason that they're not the most intelligent film genre out there, I can absolutely and fully enjoy them nonetheless for what they are, so I haven't regretted seeing a single one yet, although I do have my least and most favorite ones among them, but then again: so will everybody else...

The only reason I think it's a shame that they made Drax the way he is, is because of the loss of potential, as I already described in previous comments: he is supposed to be the equal of Thanos, as he is in the comics, so he should never be defeated so easily by Ronan the Accuser, and he should also be able to go head to head with the Hulk.

All of that would, in my humble opinion, make for quite a spectacle. The Hulk vs Drax the Destroyer should, for all intents and purposes, be a much more spectacular fight than the Hulk vs Iron Man in beefed up armor, or even the Hulk vs Thor, which we'll get to see in Thor: Ragnarok.

Oh well, like you, I will still enjoy them for what they are, and in the end it's only movies, so I won't get too worked up about it anyway...

@ThanosReXXX
Annual day? Was it your birthday and I didn't know it?

@AlexSora89 Yup, yesterday.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE showing at E3 means it's difficult to stop Leaks ! A nintendo Direct is perfect! keeps all the secrets safe and we get some awesome Muppet presentations!

@ThanosReXXX
Happy Deathday to you and the thousands of planets you decided to slaughter in celebration, mad titan!

@AlexSora89 Nàh, I've actually grown too soft in my older age. I just kicked them a little out of orbit...

@ThanosReXXX

@AlexSora89 Loki? Ha! Puny God...

@ThanosReXXX
Come back next year, when we have actual Infinity War GIFs...

@beazlen1 Cloud saves is the number one thing I'm hoping for!