E3 2009: Back to its Roots?

Well, it looks like the E3 hype is officially kicking off, and it's just barely February. The Entertainment Software Association has released a list of the attendees that have been confirmed so far, and there are a few folks on there that didn't show for last year's iteration.

Most notably, Activision Blizzard makes a reappearance. I've been speculating since last year that their decision not to attend in 2008 would either mark the end of E3, or would signal the need to transition the expo back to its original format. Obviously, the ESA has opted for the latter. Additionally, the rabid success of PAX (The Penny Arcade Expo) has basically backed the ESA into a corner. Either they improve, or they rapidly become irrelevant.

This should be a very interesting year to be at E3. We'll have to wait and see how it all comes out.

The list of confirmed attendees so far is:

• Activision Blizzard, Inc.
• Atari, Inc.
• Atlus U.S.A., Inc.
• Bethesda Softworks LLC
• Capcom Entertainment, Inc.
• Disney Interactive Studios, Inc.
• Eidos Interactive
• Electronic Arts, Inc.
• Epic Games, Inc.
• 505 Games
• IndieCade
• KOEI Corporation
• Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
• LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC
• Majesco Entertainment Company
• Microsoft Corporation
• Midway Games Inc.
• MTV Games
• Namco Bandai Games America Inc.
• Nintendo of America, Inc.
• Rebellion
• Sega of America, Inc.
• Serious Games
• Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.
• Sony Online Entertainment LLC
• Square Enix, Inc.
• Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.
• THQ Inc.
• Ubisoft Entertainment
• Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Inc.