It’s been a console generation of serious ups and downs for PlayStation, and it feels like a lot of those downs have come over the last couple of years.
It’s not controversial to say that Sony’s been taking Ls for quite some time — the general perception of PlayStation as a brand, and by extension the PS5, has nosedived into negativity thanks to a number of factors.
But in short, it just seems as though Sony’s struggled to properly understand its target audience over the course of this generation, and that’s led to an awful lot of unrest in hardcore circles.
Now, before I continue, I should stress that from a business point of view, the PS5’s been a roaring success. At least, for the most part.
Despite the initial difficulties of launching a console during a global pandemic and having all kinds of production timelines upended, the PS5’s done exceedingly well for itself.
Meanwhile, the PS Store continues to be an absolute goldmine for everyone involved. Sony’s basically making more money than ever before.
But you could argue that this level of relative success has blinded the company to a number of festering faults spread throughout its gaming portfolio.
Its push into the live service market has been a disaster of epic proportions, for example — and personally, I think that’s probably been the biggest point of contention for so many fans.
As the generation’s worn on, it’s felt like Sony’s been too busy chasing trends to properly grasp what its most loyal supporters actually value.
And that’s why I think this upcoming State of Play is particularly important. This showcase is set to be, in essence, PlayStation’s big summer blowout. E3’s obviously long gone, but this is the closest thing we’re going to get.
Indeed, Xbox has an event as well, and that’s airing a couple of days after Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest bonanza. This State of Play is happening before all of that, on the 2nd June.
I should stress that we’ve been here before — and recently, at that. There was a State of Play back in February that had a similar kind of weight attached to it, and that one turned out to be pretty damn good, boasting all kinds of highly rated announcements and reveals.
But this is what I’m getting at: even that excellent State of Play example — arguably the best prerecorded broadcast that Sony’s ever put together — couldn’t turn the tide. A few weeks later and we were back to where we started, with negativity seeping into every PlayStation-related topic.
If Sony wants to win back some much-needed faith, then this newly announced show has to be a banger. Early signs are promising, I suppose, since Marvel’s Wolverine has already been confirmed as a headliner — and the whole thing’s going to last over 60 minutes.
But without wanting to bring the mood down, can you imagine if, say, halfway through the broadcast, we get a sizeable update of Fairgames?
Any mention of the live service shooter has been met with near total disdain for years now, and it’s exactly the kind of re-reveal that would suck the life out of the showcase. Even if, against all odds, it looked incredible, it feels like the damage has well and truly been done.
My point here is that Concord’s got a hell of a lot to answer for. The negativity that currently surrounds PlayStation has stemmed from many places — such as the significant hardware price hikes — but so much of it can be traced back to the abject failure of misguided projects like Concord.
Even an appearance from Horizon Hunters Gathering would go down like a lead balloon at this point.
I’m convinced there’s an alternate universe where Guerrilla Games’ co-op action title is being championed thanks to its striking art direction and an unshakeable faith in the studio’s talent.
But in our reality, there’s just no way it can gather any meaningful momentum because of PlayStation’s doomed live service shenanigans. It’s brutal, but this is a problem of the platform’s own making.
So, I’ll reiterate: this big State of Play needs to be a home run, unless Sony’s adamant to keep this losing streak going. It needs to give PS5 players a real reason to be excited for what is, effectively, the closing years of a console generation.
Maybe Wolverine will be enough — I trust Insomniac to show off some super cool stuff — but a showcase that promises over an hour of content can’t afford to miss the mark.
That’s always been true, even back in the days of E3, but right now, Sony’s saddled with spiralling hardware costs, first-party studios struggling to find their footing five years into a console generation, and a general perception that PlayStation’s management don’t have a clue.
It’s time to put up or shut up.
How are you feeling about this upcoming State of Play? What do you actually want from it? Lay out your expectations in the comments section below.
