Louis Hughes’ Biggest Takeaway from E3 2019: Mobile Games Presence

Louis Hughes’ Biggest Takeaway from E3 2019: Mobile Games Presence

While I thought E3 had a decent showing of new titles, announcements, and gameplay, there was something I noticed that has seeped into E3 for the worst. Mobile games.

While mobile gaming should be showcased, since there are good mobile developers out there, the problem is that most of these games are using microtransactions. Because of the success of this and the controversial lootboxes, features that were only for mobile have been incorporated into big budget titles. If memory serves me right, EA, Limited Run Games, Devolver Digital, and Nintendo were the only conferences that did not mention mobile games. This moment was hit hard when the developers of The Avengers game announced that there will be no pay to win or lootboxing. That moment got a huge cheer, but I was thinking why are they cheering for something that should not be included in the first place?

It’s no secret that games like Fortnite have earned Epic Games a lot of money thanks to these methods, as the game is free to play and they have to make a profit someway. What I don’t like is how after you pay full price for a title they expect more by putting a paywall in front of you. If you want to earn content by grinding you’re punished for it.

After the fiasco of announcing Diablo Immoral at BlizzCon, you would think publishers would be wise not to announce mobile games at an event catered to hardcore fans. Heck, I’m surprised E3 hasn’t started a conference for mobile gaming since there is an audience for it.