Wedbush Morgan analyst (and TGR quotation favorite) Michael Pachter has surveyed the landscape of E3, and he does not like what he sees. The outspoken industry member believes that the new format of E3 is a miserable failure, and he thinks that if things continue in this vein, then publishers will begin pulling an Activision and staying away, eventually leading to the collapse of what was once gaming’s most revered event. Said Pachter:

"Prior to last year, publishers and console manufacturers used E3 to address the needs of their core constituents: media, retail, investors, and consumers. By choosing to eliminate any potential for a consumer element to the show, the ESA chased away much of the television media.

"By scheduling the show two months later than in the past, retailers stayed away. By scheduling the show during the calendar quarter financial quiet period, only limited access was provided for buy- and sell-side analysts. ESA leadership appears to agree that the timing and scope of the show is a mistake, but is hamstrung by some of its more influential members..."

Pachter then claimed that the show as it stands now is "headed for extinction," and that a balance must be struck between the 30,000 person circus that was the old E3 and today’s much smaller, quieter, more boring affair. He does believe that the logistics of the show were much improved over last year’s Santa Monica debacle, but thinks those gains were offset by publishers losing tons of money in free publicity that they would have drawn in the E3 of old.

Talking with some of the publishers, they seem to echo Pachter’s sentiments. One PR rep I talked to said her company was strongly considering abandoning E3 in favor of a smaller, cheaper, invite-only affair where journalists could spend a weekend at an exotic locale and just one company could have their attention for a full weekend. When I asked about the cost of such an affair, she said it would probably be cheaper than their tiny E3 space and would likely lead to more coverage for their games.

You know that when the PR folks, the very people that are supposed to smile and profess their love for the ESA, are unhappy then things indeed look grim.