Eyes on the Prize
The E3 stream numbers are in for this past weekend’s jam-packed schedule, offering us a look at which publishers’ presentations were considered “can’t miss” by the gaming community at large. It appears that this year, once again, Nintendo was most assuredly the place to be.
According to figures from data analysts Stream Hatchet, Tuesday’s Nintendo Direct attracted 3.1 million viewers at its peak, making the presentation the most-watched stream of E3 2021. This is followed by Saturday’s Xbox/Bethesda showcase, which attracted a peak viewing figure of 2.3 million. Xbox’s Phil Spencer had previously tweeted that the presentation was the most viewed in the company’s history.
The statisticians note that other streams from the weekend saw smaller, but still impressive numbers. Ubisoft Forward had a peak audience of 1.4 million views, while Square Enix drew in the eyes of 1.3 million viewers. Devolver Digital‘s typically silly fun-fest pulled in 1.1 million viewers, which bodes very well for the indie scene. Stream Hatchet did not include numbers for the Capcom presentation, the PC Gaming Show, or other streams.
E3 was most definitely a more low-key affair this year, both in scope, content, and overall “noise”. But there’s no denying that some excellent (or at least intriguing) titles were featured in all of the above presentations, with many an exciting update and even a few surprises. The summer is only just beginning, and with events such as Gamescom and PAX still on the horizon, there will be many more streams and showcases to come in this, a somewhat more subdued year for the gaming industry.
Nintendo Direct leads E3 2021 viewership [GamesIndustry.biz]
