June 9, 1995.
This date had been circled on calendars for months.
From the IDSA's initial planning and site selection at the Los Angeles Convention Center to the manufacturers' registration and final booth assignments, the entire process had taken over a year.
The video game industry finally had its own dedicated trade show: E3, the Electronic Entertainment Expo.
No longer would it be squeezed into a corner of CES, forced to compete for audience attention with washing machines, televisions, audio equipment, telephones, and computers.
This time, all the spotlights, all the cameras, and all the audio recorders in the hands of journalists were trained solely on gaming.
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The exhibition would last three days.
June 9th and 10th were designated as media days.
These two days were closed to the public, reserved exclusively for accredited media, suppliers, distributors, partners, and industry professionals invited by the manufacturers.
In essence, these forty-eight hours were the true heart of the event. The major press conferences, the most significant announcements, the "ammunition" that manufacturers had been stockpiling for months—all would be fired during this period.
Media day passes had been distributed two weeks in advance, uniformly produced by the IDSA and color-coded by category: manufacturers, media, and partners/channels.
Blue passes were for manufacturers, yellow for media, and green for partners and channels.
Each pass displayed the holder's name, affiliated organization, and expiration date on the back, with a one-inch photo in the upper right corner of the front.
The lanyard colors also varied, allowing attendees to identify each other's status from a distance.
June 11th was public day, falling on a Sunday.
On this day, anyone with a ticket could enter the exhibition, primarily targeting gamers and ordinary visitors.
The ticket price was set at $15, not cheap, but given the opportunity to see so many new titles from various manufacturers firsthand and touch games that hadn't yet been released, it didn't deter anyone.
In fact, 70% of the public day tickets had been sold in advance a week prior.
At 8 AM, the South Hall entrance of the Los Angeles Convention Center opened on time.
Security personnel pulled back the barricades, and the first group to enter were all media representatives.
Reporters and photographers from leading American gaming magazines such as GamePro, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Net Generation, and Game Informer led the way, their yellow media passes hanging around their necks, their backpacks stuffed with camera gear and recording equipment.
At the forefront of the crowd were reporters and photographers from several top American gaming magazines, their yellow media credentials hanging prominently on their chests, their backpacks bulging with camera gear and recording equipment.
Following them were publications focused on computers and technology, such as Wired and Popular Mechanics. Further back came reporters from major newspapers—the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, and Washington Post each sent representatives. While their numbers were small, their presence itself spoke volumes.
The video game industry had finally reached a point where it warranted the attention of editors from mainstream media outlets, who flew in specifically for the event.
Japanese media were also well-represented. A six-person interview team from Famitsu split into two groups: one covering the booths and the other attending press conferences.
Even Weekly Shonen Jump sent an editor, citing the need for firsthand material as they expanded their gaming section this year.
South Hall was the first stop for attendees.
The booths of major console manufacturers lined the main corridor, interspersed with those of smaller and mid-sized companies.
Sony's booth occupied the most prominent position, directly facing the entrance.
The entire exhibition area was dominated by a deep blue color scheme, with a massive PlayStation logo hanging overhead. The screens inside the booths remained dark, but the lights were fully illuminated, casting a cool, clean glow that made the entire space look sharp and modern.
The staff wore matching black polo shirts with white PS logos on their chests, standing in neat, orderly rows.
Nintendo's booth was diagonally opposite Sony's, its red and white color scheme instantly recognizable. The classic Nintendo logo hung above the booth, while a row of television sets stood below, their machines powered on and ready to go.
An interesting detail was a section in the center of the booth covered by a curtain, hiding something unknown.
The staff here didn't wear uniforms, but each had a red armband with "STAFF" printed on it.
Sega's booth was located deep in the South Hall, ranking among the top three in size.
The main visual theme of light blue with white borders ran throughout the entire area. A towering, full-height illustration of Sonic stood in the center of the booth, flanked by demo areas and video display sections.
Oguchi Hisao had arrived with his staff half an hour early. All the demo machines had completed their self-checks, and the controllers were lined up in a row, each accompanied by an operation manual.
Atari's booth was slightly smaller than usual, decorated with wood-grain panels in a retro style.
3D0 was tucked away in a corner, its booth barely holding its own. Only three staff members were present, and one was still adjusting wiring.
However, most media reporters didn't linger at the individual booths after entering the South Hall.
Experienced journalists would glance at the booth layout, snap a couple of panoramic photos for the archives, and head straight for the Central Plaza Exhibition Hall.
The reason was simple:
The exhibition handbook clearly stated that all press conferences would be held on the main stage in the Central Plaza Exhibition Hall on the first day of the media event.
The handbook, distributed a month in advance, listed each manufacturer's press conference schedule, running from 9 AM to 6 PM with intervals as short as fifteen minutes.
The area with the highest concentration of information was always the main stage.
Seasoned trade show veterans knew that booths could be visited at any time, but press conferences, once missed, were gone forever.
The main stage area in the Central Plaza Exhibition Hall was already set up.
Two large screens on the stage displayed the IDSA logo. The lighting was adjusted, and the sound system had undergone acoustic testing the night before.
The seating area was divided into two sections.
The front section was reserved for the media, with no assigned seats. Yellow badges granted first come, first served access.
The rear section and side areas were reserved for partners and channel distributors, with numbered seats corresponding to invitation cards.
These exclusive seats ensured that partners could always return to their seats after leaving to discuss business at their booths or in adjacent conference rooms.
The IDSA organizing committee set up information distribution tables on both sides of the main stage.
Even during the booth setup phase, the committee had notified each exhibiting manufacturer, recommending they prepare optical discs and printed press kits containing their launch materials. These were to be placed on the distribution tables for the media to collect.
Most manufacturers complied.
Major host manufacturers each prepared over 200 copies.
A few small and medium-sized manufacturers skipped the optical discs, simply stacking their printed materials in piles at the corner of the tables.
8:55 AM.
The seats in the Central Plaza Exhibition Hall were already full.
The media section was nearly packed, with photographers setting up tripods in the aisles, all lenses aimed at the main stage.
People stood in the back, and the walls were crowded with attendees. Reporters with notebooks rested their elbows on chair backs, turning their heads to observe the stage setup.
The main stage remained dark. Two large screens displayed static IDSA images, with white text on a blue background.
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