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Sony won’t be bringing the PlayStation roadshow to E3 2019, but Microsoft and Nintendo have been confirmed.

Yesterday, the Entertainment Software Association – or the ESA, the USA’s video game trade body – started to drop its first information about E3 2019. Well, not before bragging about E3 2018 a bit, including the following statistics:

  • A 2.9 million concurrent viewers on Twitch;
  • More than 15 million tweets;
  • Approximately 55 million Facebook interactions;
  • Over 1.6 billion minutes of E3 content viewed on multiple streaming platforms; and,
  • More than 69 million views of E3’s top video game trailers on YouTube.

One partner who will be conspicuous in their absence from E3 2019, however, is Sony. For the first time in the event’s history, PlayStation will not be present at the 25th E3.

In a statement – via Kotaku – Sony said:

“As the industry evolves, Sony Interactive Entertainment continues to look for inventive opportunities to engage the community,” said Sony in a statement. “PlayStation fans mean the world to us and we always want to innovate, think differently and experiment with new ways to delight gamers. As a result, we have decided not to participate in E3 in 2019. We are exploring new and familiar ways to engage our community in 2019 and can’t wait to share our plans with you.”

Sony isn’t the first major publisher to eschew E3. Nintendo famously didn’t hold a conference in 2013, and since then have delivered pre-recorded video presentations rather than flashy press conferences. EA have also dropped out of the main show in recent years, choosing to host an off-site event instead. And with its Mixer Theatre literally just over the road from the Los Angeles Convention Center, Microsoft has also had a diminished presence at E3.

The PlayStation announcement has naturally lead to all sorts of speculation about why Sony aren’t attending E3 2019, having also cancelled their annual PlayStation Experience event next month. Maybe they’re holding fire for the PS5 announcement? Perhaps they won’t have any playable games to showcase? Did we all just hurt their feelings, making fun of the weird church/flute combo?

Unless someone at Sony says it, or confirms any of these theories, it would therefore be wise to take it all with a massive spade full of salt.

What is undeniable, however, is that PlayStation’s absence at E3 2019 will be another massive blow for the show, and will leave a gaping hole in the LACC.

Still, at least we’ll always have Devolver’s trailer park.

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