E3 Will Be Open to the Public for the First Time Ever in 2017
Images via Kevork Djansezian/Getty, ESA Games News E3
The Electronic Software Association announced today that, for the very first time, E3 will be open to the public in 2017.
Priced at $250 (or $150 if you buy early), 15,000 “consumer passes” will become available for fan purchase at noon on Feb. 13. These tickets will give attendees access to panels, the show floor and other soon-to-be-announced events taking place between the Tuesday and Thursday of the convention.
The ESA dabbled in fan inclusion last year with their free and publicly accessible E3 Live event, which was located just outside the LA Convention Center, the longtime home of the massive industry-only expo. Attendees had access to game demos, music, meet-and-greets and more at the off-site experience.
More developers and publishers, such as EA and Nintendo, have been skipping E3 altogether in recent years (though they still announce games and have demos available), so perhaps this is the ESA trying to keep the expo the massively profitable neon clusterfuck it has always been. We know the convention is staying in L.A. for a while, at least, as the ESA signed a deal to keep the convention there until 2021.
More on the exact details of E3’s new commitment to fan access is said to be coming in the approaching weeks. For now, check out today’s announcement video for the consumer passes below, and find out more on E3’s website here.