The World’s Biggest Focus Test E3 is also the world’s largest glorified focus test. The industry-wide crunch leading up to an E3 demo is well-known, and it’s a stressful exercise for all involved. But it’s all for a crucial purpose: to see how the media and their peers react to their games. Developers manning booths are all too eager to invite other developers and press over to grab a controller and try out their latest to see how they play. Attention spans at E3 are woefully short, and at best you have three minutes to get noticed, differentiate yourself from the competition, and create excitement. It takes Herculean effort to keep someone’s eyes and mind on the game for longer than a few moments in an environment in which everything and everyone else is literally conspiring against you. Only the best, loudest and most engaging titles will win the game of E3. Then again, what better place is there than E3 to learn valuable lessons in user experience and attention retention? You’ll be hard
pressed to find any other single event that has so many people coming through in such a short amount of time in which you can test the game’s immediate appeal. Although booth duty at E3 can be drudgery, with the right attitude it can be an amazing opportunity to learn about people, your game, and how to make it better. When taken as a whole and adding up all the cumulative sensations, spectacles and experiences comprising E3, oddly enough you’re left with an overall impression that E3 mimics the very games it presents: Flashy, full of polish, but ultimately more about style than actual substance. But that’s not to say that it’s a hollow experience. By no means. Much like visiting Las Vegas, it’s an experience every game developer needs to have at least once. Or a few times. Speaking of which: When’s the next E3?
gamesauce • Fall 2010 69