While the question of whether E3 is really social yet is undecided, for those of us going, there’s a lot to make sure we have locked down before we head over. The event has a lot in common with GDC, in that it’s great for developer business meetings, so many of the GDC guidelines remain the same. There’s really no need to rewrite what’s there, so I’m not going to. However, there are subtle differences with the shows, that affect how you handle this one.
Preparation
One difference is that for this show, we’re all flying down to LA. That means packing light. It bears repeating to bring 250 business cards, your mobile phone charger, and your iPad for e-mailing during the day. You don’t want your iPhone dead by party-time. One thing I’ve learned since GDC though is to bring one AT&T device, and one Verizon device, to cover your coverage bases. If you’re buying an iPad today, I recommend the Verizon one, since it has a built-in MiFi, with a lovely Apple-enforced cheapo plan. On clothes, again, just the one pair of jeans. In the past, I would have recommended a sport coat too, it’s the official uniform. But I’m somewhat fed up of that. You may want to pack it to be safe, for example if you’re going to Mortons Steakhouse one evening. But I wouldn’t expect to wear it around. LA is hot. Plus, maybe I’ve been watching a little too much Downton Abbey, but it feels a little anachronistic to me.
Also, on the whole security theater slash totalitarian fear state shenanigans we all go through at airports, don’t bother much with consumable toiletries. A travel size toothpaste, a travel hair spray, and your deodorant are all you really need. Every hotel has soap, shampoo, and conditioner, and the conditioner can double as shaving cream. If you’re planning to shave. I myself am not. It’s irritating and involves rubbing steel blades on your face. Perhaps I’m becoming a slob, but I’m not sure who I’m supposed to impress anymore.
As for the day of travel, likely today by the time you read this, prepare for flight delays. Pad at least an extra 30 minutes onto your departure and arrival times. LAX is a crazy airport, but at least there’s a lot of flights in and out. I’d still use it, although Burbank is far more civilized. If I were renting a car, I’d fly into Burbank. The car rental fleets are all at the airport, saving you that valuable 30 minutes of shuttle time. Except I’m not renting a car, and neither should you. It adds another 30 minutes to get and drop the car, and another 15 minutes every time you get it out of the hotel valet. Add the mental load of trying to find places you’ve never been, under traffic conditions that are new to you, and it adds too much onto your plate. Taking a taxi relieves that load, and let’s you e-mail and text during transit. Given hotel parking and destination parking, to say nothing of parking at the LA Convention Center, the costs and aggravation eat up any savings from renting a car. Just take a taxi.
On Site
Attend your on-site booth prep meeting. You’re on deck representing your company, and this show is way more press-heavy than GDC. Every booth manager will create an E3 Book, like the spectacular, full-color bible that Tali Fischer and team created for the on-site GREE team. Even if you’re not a press spokesperson, you are on point, and representing your company, whether you’re demoing a game, walking around with your company name on your badge, or partying into the night.
You likely have meetings scheduled. If you haven’t left an hour on each day to check out the show floor, cancel the least important meetings. You’re not just there because it’s convenient to meet with people there. You’re there to see, play, and experience everything else going on in the business. You have got to see what else is going on there. You need to report back on the state of the industry to everyone else back at your company, and for the benefit of your own assessment of the market for your own future initiatives. These extra two to three hours are far more important than your daily lowest priority meetings, which can be handled by phone anyway. As for why you’re doing these every day, you want to ask people in the evenings what they thought of the show, what was cool, what didn’t work, and see for yourself the next day. Crowdsource and iterate in realtime.
As for parties, again, make sure you’re on the buddy system and alternating with water. And when I say parties, make sure you’ve got a good cross-section of types of events. Make sure to make time for your work colleagues, your mail-list buddies, and your old friends. Make sure you’re doing industry breakfasts, hanging out at your hotel bar, going to dinners, and a couple of big, crazy parties. As for trying to get your day job done in the evenings, definitely hyper-prioritize, and spend no more than two hours doing this per day. Seriously. You’re on deck, you’re demoing, you’re meeting, you’re observing, you’re networking, and you’re living your life. Don’t kill yourself by holding yourself to a standard that nobody else expects of you. You’re at E3. Enjoy it.
Check-In
And while you’re there, check in with SoMoFos! Alas, Shawn is skipping the show, but I’ll be there at the GREE booth, South Hall #2810, most of the time. I’ll be in meetings there Tuesday and Wednesday, so stop by and say hi. I’ll also be on the regular party circuit, attending the UTA, CAA, Wedbush, GREE, Intel/IGDA, ESA, GI.biz, and WIGI receptions, in addition to a smattering of Fight Club-esque events that I can’t describe under penalty of expulsion. One thing I can and should tell you about is that I’ll be participating in GameSpot’s live E3 stage show, called Bonus Stage. I’ll be chatting with Jake Kasdal, of Skulls of the Shogun fame, about the new direction of games, and how E3 needs to adapt. That’s happening on Thursday at noon at GameSpot’s booth, West Hall #4500. So, feel free to come by and cheer or heckle as you see fit. And I’ll see you in comfortable shoes at E3!
Priorities
Also, buy your Prometheus tickets now for Friday, you’ll have too much on your mind this week, and you don’t want to miss opening night.
My advice:
1) Dress accordingly. I would literally be either standing, walking or sprinting, all day, every day of E3 to see booths and to make meetings that I stupidly planned across the convention centre. Good shoes, a handkerchief and breathable clothing are imperative — the centre gets ungodly hot.
2) Don’t buy food or drink at the centre. The lines are ridiculously long and everything is expensive. Eat big in the morning and hang on until dinner.
3) If you don’t have a scheduled booth tour, see the big ticket items early. You see that 3 hour line for the Wii U today? It’s going to be a 6 hour line come Day 3.
4) Go to the Sprint press event. Don’t know if they still do this, but Sprint would have a low key event in the club house next to the convention centre. They would always give out pretty sweet new phones with free data/calling plans and would have some awesome/easy tournament on the phones after E3 (I’ve come in 2nd twice and gotten some cool swag for getting high scores in pacman and tetris).
Hey Chris, thanks for chiming in with those essentials. Couldn’t agree more with the food at the center advice. In past years the food was also terrible, although I noticed that the large upstairs cafeteria in the South Hall lobby now serves sushi.
I don’t have much to add, but I’ll confirm that bringing water and your own snacks/lunch is excellent advice. Typically, I’ll bring several breakfast bars and bottled water, but I won’t eat an actual lunch. So don’t get sick by running around without eating or drinking at all, but yeah, avoid buying food at the convention center.
I’ll be at E3 just for some press conferences and the first day of the show. After that, I’m going on another actual vacation. Even though I know there will always be a lot of good stuff to see at E3, after 10 years, I’m not that excited about it. I can always catch up later.
Actually I do have some additional advice. Be nice. That’s how I wish everyone would behave anyway, but as a tangent to what Chris said, if you do happen to miss out on some of the “big ticket” items especially the kind for which you need an appointment or need to wait in a like longer than your schedule will allow, you may find a sympathetic ear by explaining your situation to a booth rep. I’ve been accommodated in this way and have been able to skip lines or sit in on another group’s appointment or booth tour, etc. Each time though, I had a genuine situation, I wasn’t making stuff up and abusing people’s kindness. BTW, in this situation, people are sometimes sympathetic to those with an exhibitor badge since they know or assume that you don’t have a lot of free time.
Hey Olan, it was great seeing you at the show, thanks for stopping by!
And I love “be nice.” That’s proven essential time and time again. Thanks for reminding us.
Great guide, Jamil. I probably should have followed a little more of your advice. Except that whole non-shaving thing, and I’ll admit to bringing 6 days’ worth of clothes and being happy with that decision.
But as a woman preparing for the conference, I was a little frustrated when my google search for “what to wear to E3″ yielded lots of sport coat references. So I wanted to offer an addendum to your already excellent guide.
E3 tip #1: Comfortable shoes! It’s been said above, but I’ve gotta reiterate this for the women, because it’s such a tempting one to ignore. You need walk-for-20-blocks-carrying-demo-equipment comfy. Heels are for amateurs. Even dress flats can feel like razors on your feet after that much walking.
Those women in cute shoes and clothes may look gorgeous, but they are in pain. Or they are robots.
E3 tip #2: If you fly and check a bag, make sure you CARRY anything you will need to get to your first meeting on time if your bag is lost. Clean shirt, deodorant, and makeup if you want it. This also includes any demo equipment you will need.
Girls, your male coworkers won’t quite understand why it would be horrifying to show up to the first meeting feeling like a swamp monster.
E3 tip #3: The women’s bathrooms have no lines, obviously. It’s awesome.
E3 Tip #4: Map and BOOKMARK the locations of all your meetings and parties in your smartphone ahead of time. Your data plan will absolutely not work when you need it in the vicinity of the convention center. Especially if there’s a hockey playoff game next door AND the president comes to town on the same night.
Thousands of drunken hockey fans make an … INTERESTING… backdrop to biz dev meetings, though!
E3 Tip #5: You are in a VERY crowded space. Your license to walk backwards has been revoked. This is really just a general life tip. For everyone.
E3 Tip #6: If you’re in the games industry, make sure you sign up early for a free pass — even if you don’t think you’re going this year. It’s better to have the free pass and not use it, than to have to beg/borrow/steal/buy a $1000 pass at the last moment.
E3 Tip #7: Swag is for your friends and coworkers at home. And if there are personalized bunny ears being given out, get over there and grab those things on Day 1.
After observing E3 all week, I wasn’t able to find the perfect women’s answer to the sport coat outfit — dressy, comfortable, and able to transition day to night (since you may not have time to go back to your hotel to change). It’s easy to end up feeling underdressed compared to the sport-coated men and beautifully, uncomfortably shod women, or overdressed and unable to walk as far as you need to. So, if you figure it out, let me know!
Wow Shelby, thanks for such an awesome comment! You’re so right to include the female analog to my obviously Jamil-centric list. A couple of follow-ups:
1. What shoes do you recommend then? Dressy tennis shoes?
2. Love bookmarking, thanks for mentioning.
3. Totally agreed on get a free pass while you can. Don’t cut yourself off!
And yes, I don’t have an answer for the sport coat outfit either. Except to suggest staying at the Figueroa hotel, so you can easily get to your hotel after the show and change.
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