State of Play Predictions
Image: Push Square

Sony's next State of Play airs tonight, and we're sat here trying to predict what might be shown. In truth, it's a hard one to nail down. While the Japanese giant has provided an outline of its plans (which we'll examine shortly), there's been no clear indication as to what games will actually be featured — barring up-front confirmation of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League and Destiny 2: Lightfall, anyway.

So, without further ado, let's get right into our (rather shaky) predictions.

Sony's Been Setting Expectations

State of Play Predictions
Image: Push Square

As alluded, Sony has already tried to set expectations by outlining tonight's State of Play. We know that the broadcast will be around 45 minutes long (which makes it quite lengthy, comparatively speaking), and it'll present five PSVR2 titles, alongside a mix of indie and third-party reveals. We also know that Suicide Squad will take up 15 minutes of the show with a deep dive — presumably at the end — and that Destiny 2's Lightfall expansion will get an exclusive launch trailer.

Again, 45 minutes makes this a potentially meaty State of Play, and Sony has said it's got a total of 16 titles to run through.

What's Next for PSVR2?

PSVR2
Image: Push Square

PSVR2 may have only just launched yesterday, but the timing of this State of Play surely suggests that Sony is already looking to reinforce its latest product. There are still plenty of games scheduled for a PSVR2 release over the next couple of months, but what about the heavy hitters? The potential system sellers? Horizon Call of the Mountain is unquestionably the peripheral's showpiece launch title, but the headset's going to need some additional bangers as the year goes on.

Could we finally see the likes of VR darling Half-Life: Alyx be confirmed for Sony's system? We suppose it's possible, especially since these five PSVR2 titles are specifically from "partners", as opposed to PlayStation's own studios.

Luckily, the German PlayStation Blog recently leaked a handful of PSVR2 announcements that haven't been made official just yet. Green Hell VR, Project Wingman, Solaris, and Wanderer are all seemingly headed for the new platform. That's probably four of the five reveals right there.

The Big Third-Party Marketing Deals

Third-Party

Sony loves a good third-party marketing deal, and so a slate of upcoming blockbusters could make up a decent chunk of this State of Play broadcast. Looking ahead at the next several months, we've got games like Resident Evil 4, Street Fighter 6, and Final Fantasy XVI flying the PlayStation flag. Yes, we've seen plenty of all three titles already, but we need to remember that Sony has contractual obligations here.

Beyond those known quantities, though? "Third-party" could mean just about anything, so we're going to go ahead and reel off a bunch of games that fit the bill.

We're thinking along the lines of Granblue Fantasy: Relink, which has always been strongly associated with PlayStation, and doesn't yet have a set 2023 release date. Capcom's Exoprimal has featured in a State of Play before, and that doesn't have a date, either. Then we've got anticipated titles like Armored Core VI — again, 2023, but no confirmed date — and the recently revealed Crash Team Rumble, which has fallen silent since.

Needless to say, there are a lot of possibilities here, and the strength of this third-party segment could make or break the State of Play as a whole.

A Healthy Dose of Indie Love

Indies

Ah, indies. Where would we be without them? We're assuming that these smaller titles will take up more than a fair few minutes of the event, but what's actually on the menu? As with the third-party stuff, this is difficult to predict.

There are some indie games — previously promoted by PlayStation — that have been buzzing around in the background for ages, so perhaps they're a good place to start. Little Devil Inside? Goodbye Volcano High? An update or two would be nice.

We can't discount the broader indie scene, either. Projects like Open Roads, announced at The Game Awards in 2020, might be a decent shout, while we're all still waiting on a PS4 release date for Rogue Legacy 2. And here's an interesting thought: what's Playdead up to these days? The Danish developer behind Limbo and Inside has been quiet for years now. There are certainly worse places for an announcement than State of Play.

Oh, and Vampire Survivors, anyone? You'd think that the madly popular roguelike will arrive on PlayStation eventually, so why not get the official confirmation out of the way?

Suicide Squad Needs a Good Showing

Suicide Squad

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League has been billed as the star of the show, with a 15-minute segment dedicated to the co-op action title. But the truth of the matter is that faith in Rocksteady's long-awaited project has wavered of late. Last month, leaked Suicide Squad screenshots seemingly confirmed that the game will be built around a live service model, with stat-boosting loot, cosmetic drops, and battle passes.

Given the developer's history of making largely fantastic single-player experiences, it's fair to say that this realisation has upset a lot of people. What we need from Suicide Squad right now is reassurance that it's going to be a potentially great game.

With the title's 26th May release date looming, a good State of Play showing feels like a requirement — a reason to maintain, or in some cases, re-establish people's hype levels. A lot could be riding on this one.

Rumourmongering Madness

Metal Gear Rising

Two words: Metal Gear. We've all seen the rumours of remakes and remasters as Konami is seemingly a lot more open to properly re-entering the hardcore gaming space. And while we seriously doubt that any kind of full-on Metal Gear remake would be on the cards for this State of Play — especially when Suicide Squad is, supposedly, the big draw — we do wonder why these rumours simply never seem to die.

If the Japanese publisher has something up its sleeve — be it a new Metal Gear Solid collection or a Metal Gear Rising remaster (the lack of which has been a very recent source of disappointment for many fans) — a State of Play would be the venue for it. Or so we'd like to, perhaps foolishly, believe.

That's about it for our own thoughts, but what about you? What are your predictions for tonight's State of Play? Feel free to copy some of our ideas or come up with your own crazy expectations in the comments section below.