Sony is finally taking a page out of Nintendo’s book and broadcasting its own Direct-esque livestream series named State of Play. The first instalment – which will air from 14:00 PT on Monday, 25th March – promises “updates and announcements from the world of PlayStation”. But what should you realistically expect during the event? Here’s what we reckon will make the billing.

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MLB The Show 19 Strikes Out

This is going to drive non-US viewers crazy, but we guarantee MLB The Show 19 will get top billing during the inaugural episode of State of Play. Whatever your view on baseball, this franchise is a big seller for Sony, and the new game is due out hours after the State of Play stream is set to air. While the platform holder does have other broadcasts lined up to celebrate the launch, we’ll be absolutely shocked if it doesn’t spend a hot minute (or five) trying to build hype for its latest sports game.

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Sid: Become Shuman

We suspect that State of Play will be anchored by PlayStation Blog editor Sid Shuman and his crew, which could be a positive or negative depending on your perspective. It’ll be interesting to see how Sony structures this show: is it going to be a quick-fire video similar to a Nintendo Direct or a chattier version like Inside Xbox? Perhaps it will plot its own path? We’re curious to see the Japanese giant’s vision for this – but keep in mind that it will be a first attempt, so expect some rough edges.

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Day One for Days Gone

Days Gone is about a month away now, and while some people are sick to the back teeth of it, we can’t imagine Sony’s going to skip this opportunity to show it off. There’s not much left to reveal about the title now, but we wouldn’t be surprised if some kind of cinematic trailer debuted during State of Play – or the manufacturer may even feel that it’s the right moment to reveal the title’s post-release DLC plans. Whatever the case, there’s no way this stream ends without a glimpse of Deacon St. John.

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The Games That Get Overlooked

We’ve felt for a while now that the PlayStation Blog is starting to feel a little tired and out-of-date, and that’s because it’s easy to just overlook some of the smaller games that get announced there. Nintendo’s own Nindies stream offers a much better way of spotlighting oft-overlooked games, and we suspect Sony will do a similar thing here. In addition to indies, we would not be shocked to see first-party titles like Concrete Genie and Blood & Truth get dated.

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One More Thing

We’re not expecting any megatons during the State of Play stream by any stretch of the imagination, and we suspect the vast majority of the broadcast will focus on the games discussed above. However, we wouldn’t be surprised to see some “extra” announcements, such as April 2019’s PlayStation Plus lineup or perhaps even official confirmation that EA Access is coming to the PS4.


What are you expecting from the first instalment of State of Play? Are you looking forward to the broadcast? Will you be watching it with us live? Look into your crystal ball in the comments section below.