E3 2021 will go virtual, Nintendo and Xbox to attend

The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) on Tuesday announced this year’s E3 will go forward — but as an all-virtual event due to the pandemic. This will be the second year in a row E3, which will take place June 12 through June 15, has been forced to go digital.

Despite the event taking place online, there’s some cause for celebration. E3 2021 will be entirely free, so anyone can follow along as companies announce new software. Speaking of which, some of the industry’s biggest players will be in attendance, including Nintendo, Xbox, Capcom, Konami, Ubisoft, Take-Two Interactive, Warner Bros. Games, and more.

There are a few notable absences from the list, including EA and Sony, the latter of which may decide to hold its own digital presentation. Sony typically livestreams its “State of Play” announcements throughout the year, although it’s unclear if the company has anything planned for the summer. Other companies such as Square Enix, Sega, Activision Blizzard, and Bandai Namco are also absent from the list of E3 2021 attendees.

““We are evolving this year’s E3 into a more inclusive event, but will still look to excite the fans with major reveals and insider opportunities that make this event the indispensable center stage for video games,” said Stanley Pierre-Louis, President & CEO of the ESA.

With the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S now on the market, we may get a glimpse at some new and in-development next generation games. The pandemic has certainly taken its toll on the gaming industry by pushing back a lot of releases, but hopefully this year’s show will give fans more clarity over when to expect new titles to be released.

Nintendo is expected to unveil a Nintendo Switch Pro for release this holiday season, but it’s unclear if the company will use E3 as the platform to announce it. Chances are low we’ll see an announcement in June, but one could hope. Like Sony, Nintendo likes to hold its own digital events, but we’ll keep our eyes out anyway.

“The ESA looks forward to coming back together to celebrate E3 2022 in person, in the meantime see you online this June!,” the ESA said.

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