After the coronavirus canceled E3, video game industry plots Summer Game Fest

Microsoft, Sony, Electronic Arts, Bethesda and Activision are among the publishers who will participate in the so-called Summer Game Fest, a digital-only, multimonth event designed to promote current and upcoming game content. Yet with E3 canceled due to concerns around the spread of the coronavirus, Summer Game Fest will also aim to act as something of a hub for all of this summer’s announcements, which were highly anticipated among game fans due to new consoles from Sony and Microsoft on the horizon. “Our goal is to have a fully functioning digital pipeline for demos, gameplay across all platforms,” says Keighley, “so we can give fans access to more to play — that means demos, but also more in-game events, live game launches and so on.” Entertainment & Arts From my coronavirus quarantine, a love letter to video games Games are a playground, a place to see what happens when we do what we aren’t told, and a world in which failure is embraced — welcomed, even — as a way to learn. Keighley will work closely on Summer Game Fest events with Echo Park’s Iam8bit, which operates a video game art gallery, runs a record label and also creates game-focused marketing events, such as a carnival that accompanied a “Fortnite” competition at the Forum. Summer Game Fest is one of a few happenings trying to take the place typically held by E3, as gaming news sites IGN and Gamespot are plotting events that begin in June.