Sony kicked off the summer showing season with their latest State of Play and I want to go on record first: this was a good show. Not the best showcase I have ever seen. Not a slam dunk. But genuinely good, and in a landscape where these things can go sideways fast, good is worth saying out loud.
Here is everything they showed and what I actually think about it.
Before I get into it, a quick note on how I am going to do this. They showed 20 games not counting DLC or classic content, which pushes the number into the mid-twenties if you count all of it. Seven of those were games I either did not know about or had not been tracking. I am going to go through all of them, give you my reaction, and flag the ones that matter most to me. Some get more real estate than others. That is just how it goes.
Marvel's Wolverine
They opened with Wolverine and it was the right call. Insomniac has already proven they know what they are doing with Marvel properties and everything they showed confirmed that. Logan's mission is to save kidnapped mutants from Trask Industries, Jean Grey is in the game, and the violence looks as brutal as it should be. I was already in on this before the show. I am more in now. This was a statement opener.
ILL
I knew about ILL before this but I had not really locked in on it. That changed the second the new footage hit. Body horror, first person, grotesque monster design, the kind of dark and creepy that is absolutely my lane. Team Clout is doing something genuinely unsettling here and I am completely in. No release window confirmed but I do not care. I will wait. This is the surprise of the show for me personally.
Stuntman Hollywood
This one hit me in a way I did not see coming. I grew up with the original Stuntman games on PS2 and I had not thought about them in years. Then this trailer started and there was this helmet-wearing stunt driver and I caught it before they even confirmed what it was. Is this Stuntman? It was Stuntman. They have the Back to the Future DeLorean. They have KITT from Knight Rider. They have Mad Max vehicles. The whole thing looks cinematic and ridiculous in the best possible way. Pure nostalgia plus modern hardware plus a bunch of iconic licensed vehicles. I am unexpectedly very excited about this one.
Until Dawn 2
I love the original Until Dawn. Played it, loved it, did not touch the remake because the original holds up and the reactions were mixed. The sequel has Firesprite on development duty and I want them to do well. The premise is a new cast on an island where fake ghost stories become very real, Peter Stormare is back as the Analyst, and the branching narrative structure that made the first one so replayable is intact. If you like that style of game this should be on your radar. I am genuinely excited to see what Firesprite can do with a full canvas.
Control Resonant
Remedy doing more in the Control universe. That is the whole pitch. The teaser was brief and atmospheric but it was enough to confirm they are continuing to push the surreal high-fidelity presentation that made the original one of the most interesting games of its generation. I did not need much convincing. I am already there.
Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls
This game looks genuinely great and I want to be upfront about something. When I was thirteen or fourteen years old I would have been completely locked in on this. That is not me calling it a kiddie game. That is me saying this is built for people who live in the fighting game space and it shows. I grew up loving Marvel vs Capcom and everything that came with it. I love the style of BlazBlue. This is giving you a cool stylized Marvel fighting game with real depth and real personality. It looks excellent. It is just not where I am anymore when it comes to fighting games. For anyone who is ready for it this is going to be something special.
Bancho the Chef
I love Dave the Diver. That world has a specific charm that hit differently than I expected. Bancho the Chef lives in that same universe, leans into the cooking management and combat side of things, and the style is immediately recognizable. I am completely down for this.
Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis
Lara is back, there are dual pistols, snowy mountains, Aztec cities, and apparently dinosaurs. The visuals looked strong and the energy felt right. I need to see more before I have a full take but nothing I saw put me off. Cautiously optimistic.
Silent Hill: Townfall
This one is complicated for me. I love the Silent Hill world. Always have. But I am genuinely not sure what to make of this yet. The teaser was atmospheric and cryptic and No Code is an interesting studio to have on it. My concern is whether this is going to be a fully pacifist or weaponless style of Silent Hill experience, which I am not totally sure I am ready for. The soul of the franchise matters a lot and I want this handled right. Konami says a bigger reveal is coming later this year. I will reserve full judgment until then. For now I am in the interesting middle.
Kemuri: Hunt the Unseen
The concept is cool once you understand it. You are hunting and collecting yokai across a world that blends different Asian cultures, using the abilities of the yokai you have tamed. Think monster hunter but with yokai and spirit abilities. The visual style mixes realistic and artsy in a way that genuinely works. My issue is the presentation. I had no idea what I was watching until the director explained it and even then it took a minute to land. The game might be something. The reveal needed work.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword
Capcom reviving a franchise people have been asking about for years. Fast technical swordplay, Sengoku-era environments, cinematic presentation. Looks like they are taking it seriously and not just cashing in on the name. I want to see more. This belongs in the interesting pile.
Phantom Blade Zero
Every time they show this game it looks better than the last time. Fast, choreography-driven combat, stylish as anything. It is just not really my type of game. For people who are into that style of action this one keeps looking more and more like a must play.
Ray-Man: Legends Retold
A new Rayman game after all these years and the trailer looks exactly like what fans of the original would want. If you loved Rayman Legends you are most likely going to love this. That series has a specific charm and it looks fully intact. Just not my lane personally but genuinely good for the people it is for.
Ace Combat 8
The franchise is back with expanded campaign ambitions and new aircraft systems. There is a preorder demo for Ace Combat Zero which is a nice touch. I have tried to get into Ace Combat a couple of times and it just is not my type of game. It absolutely has its audience and that audience is going to be very happy.
Dune Awakening
It is a PC game getting a console release. We already know what it is. The single player mode addition is actually interesting but the announcement itself lands flat because the mystery is gone. Fine. Moving on.
No Rest for the Wicked
Same situation. Early access on PC means we already know the deal. The 1.0 launch on PS5 is the news, not the game. Nice to see it confirmed but it does not generate excitement the same way a fresh reveal does.
The Lost Wild
First person survival horror with dinosaurs from Annapurna. I did not really know how to feel about it during the show and I still kind of do not. It was just kind of there.
RuneScape: Dragonwilds
Boss-driven open zone progression coming to PS5. I am not a RuneScape person. Moving on.
Dynasty Warriors 3 Remastered
Classic PS2 era hack-and-slash on modern hardware with upgraded visuals. If you have history with Dynasty Warriors 3 this is going to hit. For everyone else it is what it is.
Marathon: Bungie showed new Marathon content and honestly it continues to look interesting. The extraction shooter space is crowded but Bungie knows how to build a world and this one has a distinct visual identity. Still keeping an eye on it.
PS Classics: Sony also announced three PS Classics joining the library. Gitaroo Man is one I have heard people rave about for years but never personally got into. If it is your thing you already know. If you have been sleeping on it apparently now is your time. Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy I remember being a decent enough game at the time, the telekinesis mechanic was fun, scratched an itch, nothing that blew my mind but solid for what it was. Good to see it back for people who have been asking for it. Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams rounds it out and this one feels intentional. Sony dropping this right after announcing Onimusha: Way of the Sword is them seeding the franchise back into people's memory before the new one drops. Smart move.
God of War: Laufey
This needs its own section because it is complicated.
The show closed with nearly twenty minutes of God of War Laufey and I left with more questions than answers. Let me be clear about one thing first: it looks beautiful. Santa Monica knows what they are doing and this game is visually stunning. That is not the issue.
The issue is the tone and the name.
God of War Laufey follows Faye, Kratos's wife, after her death as she navigates an afterlife realm shaped by myth and memory. Different protagonist, different world, different energy. I understand that. The series has evolved before. But the feeling this game gives off is so different from what we know as God of War that the name almost works against it. Whoever is making this feels like they wanted to make their own fantasy experience and the God of War title got attached to it. The whole cube thing, whatever that is, I am still not sure about. The tone is all over the place. And after twenty minutes I still could not fully answer the question of what this game actually is.
It was not ready to be the closer. It needed more context, more clarity, more of an answer before it anchored the entire show.
I want to say something before I hand out the grade because I think it is worth saying.
PlayStation first party output is genuinely elite and I think people forget that. When you are accustomed to a certain level of quality it starts to feel normal. The production, the polish, the ambition that goes into these games gets taken for granted because Sony does it so consistently that it stops feeling special. And sometimes I am guilty of that too. I can sit here and pick apart God of War Laufey's tone and question whether it lands and mean every word of it. But I also have to acknowledge that what Sony is making at the first party level is pretty extraordinary even when it does not fully connect with me personally.
You notice it most when you see something doing a similar thing but not quite at that level and people lose their minds over it because it is so good for what it is. Sony is operating at a tier where their floor is higher than most studios' ceiling. That deserves to be said. I hope people do not take for granted what they are actually playing when they sit down with one of these games. It is pretty special even when it is not exactly what you wanted.
The opening was strong, the middle had real momentum, and the surprises delivered. ILL and Stuntman were not on my radar and now they are. That is what a good show does. The E3 energy was there in structure if not in spirit. Strong opener, build through the middle, big closer. Sony understood the assignment even if the execution was not perfect all the way through.
All of this is happening in the space where E3 used to live. Summer Game Fest is running. Other showcases are happening. IGN is showing a bunch of indies. It is a busy few weeks and PlayStation kicked it off.
It is not the same as E3. It just is not. The pomp and circumstance is gone, which is both good and bad. Good because E3 had a lot of noise and nonsense baked into it. Bad because getting people in front of games in a live setting, doing interviews on the floor, watching creators and journalists and fans all react to things together in real time changes the feel of everything. You get interesting moments. You get energy that cannot be manufactured. You get people saying things off script.
What we have now is manicured. The information Sony wants to get out is getting out and that is it. Which is fine. It is efficient. But we are missing the human element and I do not think we get it back unless someone commits to a real live event again.
And while we are talking about the industry landscape, look at those release dates from this show. September and October are absolutely stacked. Game after game dropping in that window and then November goes quiet. Everyone sees GTA VI coming and nobody wants to be in its way. Which makes complete sense. You do not launch your game the same month Rockstar turns the world upside down. So enjoy the fall. We are going to be very well fed before GTA VI gets here and clears the table.
Until then this is what we have and I will take it. Seeing new things is better than not seeing them. Sony put on a good show. B grade.