This story was updated at 19:33 BST.
Ubisoft will no longer attend this year’s E3 physical event, VGC understands.
Last month the Assassin’s Creed publisher has become the first major company to publicly commit to attending the revamped E3, which will take place in June at its traditional venue at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
However, in a statement provided to VGC, the company said it has now decided to “move in a different direction” and will instead hold its own Ubisoft Forward Live event on June 12 in Los Angeles.
Forza Motorsport – Developer_Direct, presented by Xbox and Bethesda
“E3 has fostered unforgettable moments across the industry all year,” a spokesperson told VGC.
“While we initially intended to have an official E3 presence, we have subsequently made the decision to move in a different direction, and will be holding a Ubisoft Forward Live event on June 12th in Los Angeles. We look forward to sharing more details with our players soon.
E3 organizer ReedPop did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
E3 2023 – the first physical showing of the flagship industry event in four years – will run from Tuesday, June 13 and has been taken over from the Entertainment Software Association by ReedPop, the media and events company behind PAX, EGX and Star Wars Celebration.
Under the revised format, the first two days of E3 2023 (June 13-14) will be reserved exclusively for business, while the reaming days will include consumer visitors.
However, Ubisoft’s decision to stay away from E3 2023 means that, with just three months to go, no major companies have been announced as official attendees.
The fact that the company was previously committed to attendance also raises serious questions about the line-up for the revamped show.
Ubisoft has been a staunch supporter of E3, and CEO Yves Guillemot has expressed support for the 2023 plans.
Nintendo and Xbox have already confirmed that they will be skipping this year’s event. However, the latter will have some form of presence in LA in the same window.
In an update published earlier this month, new E3 organizer ReedPop said unnamed “AAA companies, in addition to indie darlings and tech and hardware firms” are committed to “returning” to LACC.
“The full roster of exhibitors will be announced in the lead-up to the expo, giving participating companies the opportunity to make their own individual announcements beforehand,” it said in a statement.
E3 2023’s “Digital Week” kicks off on Sunday, June 11, with outdoor digital events including The PC Gaming Show, Future Games Show, Guerilla Collective, and Black Voices in Gaming under the banner of this.
As well as running high-profile events in the US and Europe, ReedPop is the owner of Gamer Network, which runs websites such as Eurogamer, GamesIndustry.bizVG247 and Rock Paper Shotgun, and VGC’s network partner.
