Disney Interactive and Wargaming will also skip E3 2016

The major publishers are dropping like flies, as Disney and Wargaming are the latest to announce that they will not be attending E3 this year.

Ozzie Mejia

March 4, 2016 12:08 PM

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A month ago, E3 2016 was sure looking like an exciting event. Then a funny series of events happened. First, Electronic Arts decided to skip the show and hold its own event. Then Activision decided to skip the show. Now two more major publishers are deciding to sit out this year and potentially beyond.

According to Venture Beat, both Disney Interactive and Wargaming have opted to skip this year's E3. For Disney, it is opting to hold direct fan engagements over the course of the summer, likely at events such as the increasingly popular D23 Expo. Wargaming was far more blunt with its reasoning, stating that the show does not make sense for its goals.

"From a company perspective, we're focusing a large majority of activities on events focused on our players and community," a Wargaming spokesperson told Venture Beat. "Whether it's a small group of players or hundreds at one of our player gatherings, they’re our main priority. From a strictly business perspective, E3 just doesn't fit our current direction. It’s a show that is very centralized on retail product, and as a free-to-play digital download gaming company, we've realized that while the show may be a good fit for lots of other publishers and developers, it's currently not a great fit for us."

E3's featured publishers are dropping like flies, though the big three console manufacturers will still have a major presence at the show. In fact, Sony will actually be taking the stage with Activision and Infinity Ward. But in terms of booth space, it may be a lot easier to walk around this year if you're attending the show.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?