The two biggest competitors in the console war are without a doubt Sony and Microsoft. So you would almost imagine Microsoft to be relieved when Sony chose not to make an appearance this year at E3. But it turns out that Microsoft would have preferred Sony at E3 2019 after all.
What Microsoft Said About Missing Sony at E3
It was Xbox boss Phil Spencer who commented on Sony’s absence from E3 during Giant Bomb’s livestream. Spencer said, “I wish Sony was here. E3 is not as good when they’re not here.”
Simply reading the sentence (rather than hearing it), it would be easy to imagine that this was sarcastic. But Spencer really would have preferred Sony make an appearance for a couple of solid reasons. Firstly, he has a direct stake in E3 as a member of the Entertainment Software Association’s board of directors. Secondly, he feels that E3 is still a relevant event, and that Sony’s absence hurts gaming as a whole, not just E3.
Why was Sony not at E3 this year? The company has provided a couple of explanations. The first is the claim that E3 is no longer as relevant as it was in the past. The second is that the company would prefer to “innovate, think differently, and experiment with new ways to delight gamers.” Both of these explanations are quite vague.
but Sony is not the only company that was notably absent from E3. There were some others which also opted out, including Activision. There have also been rumors that there have been some organizational issues plaguing E3. So that might be another factor driving companies away.
In Sony’s case, we also are guessing that they are simply so busy working on PS5 that going to E3 wasn’t a good investment of their time. Speaking of PS5, Michael Pachter stated in an interview with Geoff Keighley that he believed Sony would only skip E3 if they had no good news to share. This was after a “wild prediction” he made that the PS5 would cost $800 or more.
So we probably will not know for sure the true reasons why we didn’t see Sony at E3 2019 for some time. For now, we can only speculate as we wait and wonder about the PlayStation 5. As always, any news which surfaces on the PS5 we will share with you in our PlayStation news section.