“At last count, I think around 194 events happened in 2020, 145 of which were digital.”
Q. How did the lack of events impact you this last year and do you think they’ll bounce back in 2021?
2020 has meant more than just working from home, of course. COVID-19 has shut down all major gaming events, and even with vaccines slowly rolling out, it’s going to be a long time before we’re all packed together in a noisy, crowded exhibition centre. How is the PR sector coping with this loss? “Events provide powerful images and storytelling that most potential ‘channels’ – media, social media and influencers – thrive on,” says Warning Up’s Guerrier. “The pandemic has made it a gloomy and ‘flattened’ year instead of being the expected rollercoaster and fireworks. Although streaming and digital channels have been an efficient alternative option, nothing (yet) has the same emotional impact as real life communications. “We do hope events will make a comeback in the Summer of 2021, but it will probably take years for the industry to commit to events at the same scale and with the same resources. Furthermore, digital components will have a predominant role in what future events will be and how the prime KPI is impacted.” As always, in any major change lies opportunity. There’s certainly an argument that the loss of major events dominated by triple-A titles has given more space for indies to breathe this year, as indeed Clarke from Plan of Attack states: “It’s worth noting that without the big shows like E3, Gamescom, and GDC happening, there aren’t the usual glut of major showcases that usually soak up all the oxygen in the room. This leaves a big void for media outlets and influencers to fill, which is great for indies.
Games that might have fallen through the cracks in lieu of big blockbusters at shows like E3 or Gamescom were instead picked up by huge outlets like IGN and GameSpot as part of their replacement showcases.” Still, the rush to digital events has felt like the year has been one non-stop event. There’s people doing some great work – but it can be hard to keep track these days. “Well, I think I’d actually argue there’s probably too many events this year, rather than a lack of them” says Renaissance’s Petrullo. “Almost every event has gone digital and, on top of those who already had a digital presence, it’s been hard to weigh up just what the return-on-investment will be for each one. With a physical event you tend to have attendance figures for previous years and other data, but this year everyone has essentially been starting from square one. “At last count, I think around 194 events happened in 2020, 145 of which were digital. Normally, you’d have two to four big events where the industry tries to grab a share of the noise, but this year, there are events weekly, almost daily sometimes. While that means there are more opportunities for developers that, in general, cost less to secure, the reach of each one is both indeterminable beforehand and – without naming any specific events – in many cases a lot smaller than the physical alternative. On top of that, the pandemic has meant there are less journalists covering each one, leading to a run of small events with much smaller impact than the traditional tentpoles of GDC, E3, and Gamescom.”
20 | MCV/DEVELOP January 2021
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