We take a look back at the biggest and best bits from 12 years of E3!

When gamers talk about E3, the result is a cross between war stories and tales of religious pilgrimage, and for good reason – for over ten years, the Electronic Entertainment Exposition (E3 for short) has been the premiere event for the videogame industry. Within a single three day extravaganza, the game companies and developers got together and showed off the best of the best, the biggest guns in their respective arsenals, from new hardware to killer titles to innovative technologies.

And though this year’s convention is something of a scaled down affair  (open only by invitation to journalists and other industry professionals) compared to years past, it will still garner a huge deal of attention in Santa Monica from July 11th to 13th. How did it all get started? How did E3 come to be synonymous with major announcements, corporate keynotes, and blow out parties? We take a look back at the major developments of E3’s past, and just how this beast has evolved over the years.

It all started in LA in May of 1995, when E3 was created by the Digital Software Association (now the Entertainment Software association), and it capitalized on a banner year in the industry- a time when the 32 bit console generation was just getting it’s start with Sega’s Saturn and Sony’s soon-to-be-released Playstation. Big announcement’s that year also included the Nintendo Virtual Boy and the specs for the Ultra 64 (later named Nintendo 64-the first in a long line of Nintendo console name changes) and SNK’s Neo Geo Cd.

1996  Nintendo showed off the Nintendo 64 and the revolutionary Mario 64. In fact, Nintendo had quite a show in 1996, showing off the new analog controller and hiring Cirque du Soleil performers to entertain at the pre E3 party. Not to be outdone, Sony revealed a price slash on the Playstation dropping the MSRP to $199 and Sega and Nintendo quickly followed suit. On the P.C. side, the Unreal Engine was first shown.

In 1997 the conference was moved to Atlanta due to space restrictions at the LA convention center. Big news included the unveiling of Half Life and Unreal, arguably two of the most important titles in the evolution of the First Person Shooter. Nintendo/Rare also showed a rather innovative shooter for the N64 – perennial favorite Goldeneye 007. Eidos and Konami also had an impressive showing, Eidos with Tomb Raider 2 and Konami with a demo of a little game called Metal Gear Solid.

The conference’s 1998 iteration was also held in Atlanta, and it represented the massive growth of the event, with attendance at over 70,000. Sega’s Dreamcast was shown in limited fashion – a few videos were displayed that showcased the graphical power of the “next gen” console, though all of the really good stuff was shown in secret. Another milestone- the infamous Duke Nukem Forever was first shown behind closed doors -  and still awaiting release today. Sony’s biggest guns were Gran Turismo, and the upcoming fall release Metal Gear Solid. Nintendo quietly announced that the 64 disc drive would no longer be released in America, and showed off what was possibly the biggest title of the show: the hotly anticipated Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the N64.

1999 marked E3’s move back to the expanded LA convention center, where the show has been held ever since. This was the year of the Dreamcast – Sega’s final (as of now) foray into the hardware business. The system was cleared to launch at a $199 price point, featuring online play right out of the box, and highly anticipated launch games including an arcade perfect Soul Caliber and Sonic Adventure . Also on deck were Sony’s Playstation 2, and a major pre E3 announcement from Nintendo regarding their plans to launch the “Dolphin” (later called the Gamecube) in fall of 2000, though nothing topped the Sega Hype Machine. Despite a recent rash of school shootings, this year was the splashiest E3 yet, with performances by David Bowie and even professional wrestlers in a ring at the EA booth.