Update []: Phantom Blade Zero dev S-GAME has told us it’s “still finalising” details about its future marketing beats, which would include its previously announced State of Play.

There had been some speculation the livestream may be cancelled due to the ongoing backlash Sony is facing regarding its decision to cease manufacturing physical discs.

It’ll debut an 11-minute pre-order trailer next week. Due to the length of the trailer, some had speculated this could replace the planned State of Play.

A representative for S-GAME told us it “doesn’t have anything further we can share just yet” but “that it’s excited about what’s coming”.

As previously reported, more will be revealed on 11th August, when pre-orders are scheduled to open on the PS Store.

Original Story: Where's that dedicated Phantom Blade Zero State of Play broadcast got to, then?

The event was announced back when Sony hosted its previous State of Play, promising a deep dive in "late summer".

We are, of course, creeping towards late summer right now here in the northern hemisphere, and there's still no sign of the promised showing.

I had assumed that the State of Play would be announced within the next couple of weeks, but that theory appears to have been scuppered.

Indeed, developer S-GAME has just announced the airing of a new, 11-minute trailer, dropping next week on the 11th August.

It'll go live alongside pre-orders for the action title, which is still set to launch on the 29th October.

S-GAME writes: "Development on Phantom Blade Zero is now complete." So I guess it's ready to ship.

The suggestion, then, is that the once-teased State of Play has been cancelled. It would have made an awful lot of sense for this gameplay trailer to be a big part of the broadcast.

But why would it be cancelled? Well, plans can simply change, but it's hard not to consider the controversy that PlayStation's currently trying to navigate.

As the backlash against Sony's decision to stop manufacturing game discs rumbles on, the Phantom Blade Zero State of Play would have been the company's first major broadcast since the news broke.

Without a doubt, people opposed to the decision would have flooded the show's chat and comments sections. Basically, S-GAME would have suffered for Sony's controversy.

But this is ultimately just speculation. The State of Play might still happen at a later date — but it seems really weird to announce both a gameplay deep dive and the opening of pre-orders outside of Sony's marketing machine.

Still, I'm looking forward to seeing yet more of Phantom Blade Zero — it's easily one of the most promising PS5 games coming out in the next few months, and it's looked superb in all of the footage that's been revealed so far.

For what it's worth, we've reached out to both Sony and S-GAME for comment.

What do you make of this? Can you see that State of Play still happening, or has it clearly been cancelled? Pay attention to your parry timing in the comments section below.