State of Play is the name of Sony’s new show that will present company news through live broadcasts

Some announcements are worth it for the game, and some are worth it for the format. On March 22, 2019, Sony introduced State of Play, a series of its own broadcasts to talk directly to PlayStation fans, without depending on a trade show or anyone else’s stage. The immediate comparison was with Nintendo Direct, which Nintendo had been using for years to reveal games at its own pace.

The premiere was scheduled for Monday, March 25, 2019, at 2 p.m. Pacific time (6 p.m. Brasília time), streamed live over the internet. Sony’s promise was clear: the first episode would bring “upcoming PS4 and PSVR games, including new trailers, new game announcements and new gameplay”.

What stands out is the timing. Sony had already confirmed it would not attend E3 2019, breaking a presence that went back to the show’s first edition. Shawn Layden, then head of Sony Interactive Entertainment’s studios, explained that a show in June no longer helped the company as much, which preferred to control when and how it showed its games. State of Play was the practical answer to that change.

What came next

The first edition lasted about 20 minutes and showed Iron Man VR, Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled, No Man’s Sky in virtual reality, Blood & Truth, Concrete Genie, Days Gone and Mortal Kombat 11, among others. A nice detail: much of the time was given to PlayStation VR, which rarely had that spotlight at traditional conferences. Three more episodes came in 2019, in May, September and December, with highlights such as Final Fantasy VII Remake and The Last of Us Part II. The format caught on: State of Play remained active in the PlayStation 5 era and became Sony’s main announcement channel, alongside the larger presentations called PlayStation Showcase.

Source: PlayStation Blog.