The coronavirus pandemic which has kept people in their homes has been a boost for video gaming, but it has also put the brakes on video gaming trade shows globally.

The world's most influential video gaming trade show, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), was to have been held last week in Los Angeles. But for the first time in the show's 26-year history, it was cancelled.

Last year, the show drew 66,100 attendees, over 200 exhibitors and bigwigs of the video gaming industry, such as Microsoft, Activision, Nintendo, Nvidia, Sega, Square Enix, Ubisoft and Bandai Namco.

It joins a multitude of video gaming trade shows that have been been cancelled or postponed. They include Gamescom, Games Developer Conference and Tokyo Game Show, which are among the major video gaming shows.

The inaugural Gamescom Asia, which is supposed to take place in Singapore in October, has been postponed to the same month next year.

In place of physical events, game developers and publishers have turned to digital events.

One prominent digital event is the inaugural Summer Game Fest. Organised by veteran gaming journalist and broadcaster Geoff Keighley, it collates details and timings of the digital events of participating vendors under one roof.

Its line-up of events started last month and runs to August. Participating developers and publishers include 2K Games, Activision and Bandai Namco. Sony and Microsoft are also on the list.

A Microsoft spokesman says: "In the light of the challenges presented by Covid-19, we are adjusting our event calendar and strategy. For the remainder of 2020, we are embracing the opportunity to experiment with new platforms to provide our partners, customers and developers the highest quality, digital-first experiences."

WILL VIRTUAL SUPPLANT PHYSICAL?

While digital events will be the norm this year and have been gaining momentum in recent years, a number of game developers, publishers, event organisers and fans told The Straits Times they still prefer physical events to digital ones.

Mr Ronnie Tan, managing director of gumi Asia, a subsidiary of Japanese game developer Gumi Inc, says: "In a physical game trade show, attendees will be focused on what is happening within the venue. This means the information communicated will have a lasting impression."

The resulting word-of-mouth publicity has helped further the reach of gumi Asia's games, he adds.

Gumi Asia, which specialises in mobile games, has attended many regional game shows and had planned to attend Gamescom Asia this year.

Mr Quentin Staes-Polet, Epic Games' general manager of Southeast Asia and India, says traditional game shows allow for physical interaction, on-site showcases and in-person demonstrations, which will always be richer in terms of human connection.

But he feels that both physical and digital events are relevant.

"(Digital events) have demonstrated stunning audio-visual capabilities and the possibility of creating immersive, hyper-connected and interactive virtual worlds beyond just the gaming industry. Concerts, movie premieres and conferences may never be the same again," he says.

Mega game developer Epic Games, probably best known for the blockbuster game Fortnite which has around 250 million registered players, has taken part in many E3s in the past.

Mr Shawn Toh, chief executive and co-founder of local indie game developer BattleBrew Productions, says: "Communication (during business negotiations) tends to be slower online and you don't get a full sense of what a person might be like over voice or video, especially when it comes to trying to read body language and facial cues."

The seven-staff outfit recently attended Pocket Gamer Connect Digital - the digital version of the biggest mobile game industry conference in Europe - and attended Gamescom a few years ago.

Mr Toh says the biggest downer of not being able to attend physical events this year is not getting the chance "to show the crowd what we have been working on and not being able to talk to fans in person".

Mr Guilherme Fernandes, market consultant at games and e-sports analytics provider NewZoo, says: "Some games companies had already been moving away from trade shows and towards digital events in recent years."

He notes that Japanese gaming giant Nintendo has replaced its E3 press conferences with video streams since 2013, while Sony and Microsoft have also experimented with digital events and announcements.

"A shift to digital was already somewhat under way and the coronavirus has simply accelerated this trend. For now, companies will need to find alternative ways to publicise their upcoming games and hardware. It is a matter of either evolving or being left behind," says Mr Fernandes.

Still, he says, there is no replacement "for the feeling of a full auditorium's palpable excitement over a particular event, such as (actor) Keanu Reeves appearing at E3 last year for Cyberpunk 2077". Cyberpunk 2077 is a highly anticipated role-playing game set to launch later this year.

Mr Alexander Champlin, a senior e-sports analysts at market intelligence firm Niko Partners, says video gaming trade shows are opportunities for companies to build excitement around new titles and products and for gamers and the media to try them out.

Companies also use such shows to research industry trends and test their latest products on die-hard fans.

Ms Elicia Lee, managing director of gaming marketing and events firm Eliphant and founder of the GameStart Asia gaming convention in Singapore, says a key part of attending such gaming trade shows is the networking, which is hard to bring online.

With digital events, there is a lot less opportunity for "serendipity", she says.

Mr Fernandes says indie game developers rely a lot on these trade shows to grow their business, through expanding their networks and finding potential investors.

Gaming enthusiast Khairul Sufiyan, 34, was looking forward to Gamescom Asia, but had expected the cancellation.

The public relations manager says: "The buzz at live events makes you feel like you want to explore. When you see people queueing and hear them raving about something, you immerse yourself in the excitement too."

Social media executive Jazlyn Koo, 26, will miss attending gaming shows this year as there are limited chances to try new game demonstations here. She has attended Tokyo Game Show and every GameStart convention since its inception in 2014. "These gaming shows give us a chance to try new demos. I remember when the Deus Ex: Mankind Divided was at GameStart 2015. I felt so excited just watching people play the demo right in front of my eyes. It's really something else to try the game for yourself," she says.

But it is the community atmosphere that she will miss most. "There are cosplayers, gamers and the curious - people from all walks of life - gathering for a weekend because they share the same interest. It feels like you are part of the community. It's very different from watching an online stream," she adds.

Mr Aaron Yip, editor of local video game website GameAxis, who has attended E3 15 times, says: "I definitely prefer the face-to-face experience during these gaming trade shows. For example, I would not be able to try the game demo and chat with the developer or publisher at the same time."

He adds that being able to walk around the show floor and discovering surprises, such as a game demo that looks unique which he did not know about, is something digital events cannot replicate.

"Games still need to be experienced in person, for informed first looks and impressions to be delivered to the readers," he says, adding that a digital event could only work for a game reveal.