What Can Scotland Take From E3?

E3 2013 is just around the corner, with the gaming industry firmly anticipating the news they’ve been expecting for months – and drooling at the surprises they never saw coming (Watch_Dogs, anyone?). Just like every year, I’ve been preparing myself for (essentially) leading a nocturnal lifestyle for the next week. 

Now, in my opinion, E3 is the pinnacle of the gaming calendar year: the biggest collection news, reveals, personnel and interviews happen in Los Angeles every June, and the world of gamers stop to keep up-to-the-minute with all the happenings in the hope that their favourite titles will be presented or discussed (please deliver some non-Lightning Final Fantasy content, Square Enix!).

But the “consumerist” perspective aside, I want to indulge in what Scotland can take away from events such as E3. Considering that the cost of travelling to California and setting up a booth for the attendees may be out of reach for smaller developers and teams, representation can be a tough ask. However, the media attention at this time of year is huge, and it’s a sore loss not to capitalise on the potential target audience in attendance.

So, what can we do about it?

What makes E3 events special is the amount of media attention it receives. Media means people, and people means business. We have an array of events in Scotland that should be talked about more. The media has to play a large part in spreading the message, whether it is through news channels and papers, or radio stations and podcasts. Only then can I see these events flourish and the development of the Scottish game industry blossom.

Wherever the media presents itself, the public’s awareness will expand, and I think that has been a problem that our industry has had in the past. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a good thing to share events in particular groups on Facebook to get the immediate industry involved as much as possible, but the attention of the public is not in these groups and this needs to be further explored. Grabbing media groups and journalists into the mix can only be beneficial for the development of awareness in our industry.

I would love to know what opinions are circulating out there. Is media attention the missing link between the industry and the public? Can Scotland’s gaming industry take anything else away from E3?

Andrew Reid

Managing Director