It's hard to believe that the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo is just around the corner, but we're just a month and change away from the video game industry outlining its agenda for the next year.  Last year Nintendo chose to forgo the traditional media briefing held in a large theater and instead offered an online presentation to show off its latest products and special demo events at specific Best Buy locations.  The company is doing it again this year with an expanded online presence and more Best Buy events.  Here's some of the press release:

Nintendo Digital Event Every year, Nintendo looks for the best way to show its games and share its news with fans, media and other key audiences. In 2013, Nintendo decided to forgo a traditional press conference and use a video – in that case a Nintendo Direct – to share its news from E3. The company is building on that approach at E3 2014 with the "Nintendo Digital Event," a new kind of video program that will reveal and provide further detail about the gaming experiences on the way for Nintendo platforms in 2014 and beyond. The Nintendo Digital Event will air at 9 a.m. PT on Tuesday, June 10.

Nintendo Treehouse: Live @ E3 This year, Nintendo will offer fans a deeper look at Nintendo's biggest games of E3, with information directly from the source. The "Treehouse," the Product Development department at Nintendo of America, will provide in-depth game demos live and unscripted from Nintendo's booth. This new program will be live streamed during all hours of the E3 show. Fans can get settled in, open their browsers and experience the Nintendo games at E3 like never before.

There will also be a special Super Smash Bros. Wii U tournament in Los Angeles and Smash demos at Best Buy (line up early; I went to last year's event and had to wait a very long time to get a quick shot at Super Mario 3D World).  While the online events do more to reach fans directly, I have to say that I miss the traditional press conference.  There's something about sitting in a large theater and watching Nintendo's development kings hold court for an hour.  Sony and Microsoft know how to put on dynamite shows, but Nintendo's team has a habit of letting their creations speak for themselves without celebrity endorsements or snack food marketing tie-ins taking up time during the briefing.  Sometimes that bites the company when their big announcement just lies flat on stage (the year of Wii Music comes to mind), but usually there's something exciting happening at a Nintendo media briefing that captivates the audience.  There's a shared energy in that room.  That's missing when everyone is watching a streaming event alone on an iPad.  Check out Nintendo's video announcing their E3 plans and mark your calendars.