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E3: After a two-year lull, show brings crowds, excitement back to Los Angeles

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Michael Gallagher, left, president of the Entertainment Software Assn., and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Credit: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times.

This year, the elves returned to the City of Angels. And they brought money with them -- more than $15 million in direct spending on taxi rides, hotel rooms, wine and sushi, among other things.

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The Electronic Entertainment Expo, which was substantially scaled back in 2007 and 2008, came roaring back to its former glory this week at the Los Angeles Convention Center, attracting more than 35,000 visitors to the video game confab. For Los Angeles, E3 is the biggest convention so far this year, according to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who welcomed the conventioneers Tuesday.

Some Angelenos may remember E3 for its over-the-top spectacles: soldiers rappelling from U.S. Army helicopters, models strutting in thongs and 6-inch heels, skateboarders sailing off half-pipes and celebrity-soaked parties that were more like three-ring circuses.

But the merriment came to a halt in 2007 when game companies decided enough was enough. The show, which hit peak attendance in 2005 with more than 65,000 attendees, was toned down that year to a stately affair in Santa Monica with an invite-only guest list of about 4,000. It returned to the L.A. Convention Center last July but was so low-key that some in the industry lamented that it looked like a pipe-fitters convention.

This year, the Entertainment Software Assn., the industry-funded group that puts on E3, screened the event’s registration to keep out the ‘fanboys’ -- people who like to play games but don’t work in the game industry. The group vetted booths for their ‘appropriateness.’ And companies, sobered by the bad economy, willingly spent less money on parties. Some, including Take-Two Interactive Software, which publishes the popular Grand Theft Auto game franchise, went without a booth altogether and opted for a more practical meeting room above the show floor.

The result?

‘On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d give it an 8.5,’ said Don Mattrick, senior vice president of interactive entertainment at Microsoft, which makes the Xbox 360 game console. ‘But I’m a strict marker.’

Mattrick and other attendees said the show this year struck a good balance between hype and reality.

‘This year, the world’s focus will rightfully be on E3 in Los Angeles,’ said Mike Gallagher, president of the ESA. ‘Really, what we’ve done is put together a show that is much more reflective of the high-octane high energy, innovation and excitement that is the video game industry.’

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-- Alex Pham

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