Iam8bit resigns as creative directors of E3

E3’s creative directors, production company Iam8bit, has confirmed it has resigned from the E3 2020 showcase.

“It’s with mixed emotions that Iam8bit has decided to resign as creative directors of what was to be an evolutionary E3 2020 floor experience,” the company said in a tweet. “We’ve produced hundreds of gaming [and] community events and it was a dream to be involved with E3. We wish the organizers the best of luck.”

“We can confirm that Iam8bit is no longer part of the inter-agency group working on E3 2020,” the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) added in a statement. “We greatly value their passion for the video game industry and the contributions they brought toward our vision for this year’s show.

“We have an innovative and experienced team in place including Endeavor’s creative agency 160over90, event innovators Mat+Lo and longtime E3 partners, GES, Dolaher Events and Double Forte — all collaborating to bring to life an exciting and authentic experience for fans, the media and the industry.”

Like Geoff Keighley – who recently confirmed that he will not be producing the E3 Coliseum at E3 2020 – Iam8bit did not elaborate on why they had declined to participate in the show this year.

E3 organisers the ESA says it “continues to plan for a safe and successful” show later this year, but insists it is “actively assessing” the coronavirus outbreak. The Game Developers Conference (GDC) was postponed indefinitely at the end of last week, and while attendees can expect a refund in full and those who had made hotel reservations via the organisation will be able to cancel without penalty, developers who’ve arranged their own accommodation might still be open to cancellation fees. A number of publishers have teamed up to create GDC Relief Fund to assist indie devs who may have lost money on paying in advance for the now-cancelled GDC. 

E3 2020 will take place from June 9th to June 11th 2020, once again at the Los Angeles Convention Center. E3 2018 drew its biggest attendance in a decade after opening its doors to consumers, but while 200+ exhibitors showed off their latest games at E3 2019 – a figure broadly in line with previous years – the expo attracted 3,000 fewer visitors than it did last year, dropping to a little over 66,000 attendees. Sony has already confirmed it will not be attending E3 for the second successive year.

The Entertainment Software Association has since revealed plans to change E3’s format by rebranding as a “fan, media, and influencer festival” that will invite an additional 10,000 visitors to the show.