The last PlayStation State of Play occurred back in October, where about 10 indie games got the spotlight. This created a bit of frustration, as many have associated State of Play with big names and AAA titles, not indies. Of course, there were many who were championing this treatment of indie games as well.
Now, there are rumors circulating on the internet involving the next State of Play. While the exact content of it is largely speculation, the rumor comes from Tom Henderson—a well-known insider with a history of accurate information from games such as Battlefield 2042 and Halo Infinite. This means fans should take it with a grain of salt, but it’s not something being said from the darkest corners of the internet either.
Still, many are likely and understandable cautious about this. Rumor has it this PlayStation State of Play is set for early February, the third to be precise, and that may sound too good to be true. However, there are a few reasons to believe this beyond Henderson’s own credibility.
February State of Play Rumors – Horizon, Hogwarts Legacy, and More
First, it’s worth covering what all has been said. Beyond the potential of it happening on the third, the State of Play is said to largely feature Horizon Forbidden West, as well as provide fans a Sifu launch trailer. Horizon’s segment will be similar to past events, which have featured Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart and Deathloop State of Play segments ahead of their launch.
Other potential inclusions, which are accompanied by some speculation, include Hogwarts Legacy and information on the various Last of Us projects in development. Henderson also says there is another State of Play set up for the end of March, which would focus on the latter half of 2022. Namely, it would focus on other big titles like Ghostwire: Tokyo and God of War: Ragnarok, as well as PSVR2.
Why a February State of Play Makes Perfect Sense
There are quite a few reasons to believe this is legit. First, it seems the PlayStation brand has been quite a leaky ship in recent months. Every PS Plus free game lineup has been leaked for the past few months, and while that notable leaker hasn’t commented on these rumors, it makes sense for these rumors and leaks to be happening. Also, Sony typically follows a loose pattern with many of its releases—that is to say, while State of Play is relatively young (beginning in 2019) and has been disturbed by the pandemic in the past, a State of Play took place in February 2021. To follow this pattern and release another one in February 2022 would make sense.
Secondly, Horizon Forbidden West is deserving of its own State of Play ahead of launch, and its release date is February 18. This is important because Sony has another important pattern with State of Plays: they are announced on Tuesdays and take place on Thursdays. This means February 3, February 10, and February 17 are the only Thursdays in February ahead of its launch, but content like this needs to build anticipation. Doing so on the 10th or 17th would haven’t the same impact.
It all remains to be seen, especially with cases of Omicron on the rise in various parts of the world, but the math adds up for a State of Play on February 3.
A PlayStation State of Play event is rumored for February.
Source: Tom Henderson