The PS5 Discourse Around State of Plays Is Becoming Draining | Push Square

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We’re all for fair criticism, but the discourse around Sony’s State of Play livestreams is slowly beginning to grate.

Before we get accused of being hypocrites, we’ll readily accept we’ve fed the narrative at times. We’ve opined the manufacturer’s overall lack of fan engagement, and the inconsistency between shows.

Truthfully, we think the Japanese giant’s done a pretty poor job at establishing a livestream format which serves its intended purpose: enthuse PS5 fans.

But we’ve also seen enough now to understand the company’s approach to its events, and how it wants to build hype for its games.

The clue is in the name really: State of Play isn’t intended to be some all-encompassing blowout like PlayStation events of the past. Instead, it’s, quite literally, the state of play – the “current situation in an ongoing process”, to quote Google’s dictionary definition of the phrase.

For years now there’s been a disconnect between what fans want and what Sony’s willing to deliver, and, unfortunately, it’s not operating in the way many of you want it to. With the demise of E3 and the lack of PS Showcases, the firm’s much more content giving you a taste than blowing its load.

That was evident during this week’s livestream: the firm delivered an early look at Housemarque’s new title, Saros, but it kept the rest of its lineup in its pocket. That doesn’t mean Ghost of Yotei and Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet don’t exist, it just means they’re in different stages of their promotional cycle.

This is perhaps best evidenced by Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, a title which Sony pitched as an important first-party release to shareholders this week. Age ratings suggest its release is imminent and Hideo Kojima has been publicly cutting trailers on social media, but its big unveiling is coming at SXSW in three weeks.

Would the State of Play been better with the anticipated sequel included? Yes, but as alluded to above, it’s on a different timeline. The title will get more exposure at