Sony airs two State of Play broadcasts back-to-back on Sept. 3, and rather than guess which unannounced games might appear, there is a cleaner way to judge the morning: decide what Sony needs to accomplish before either stream begins.
Sony's official announcement confirms the first broadcast starts at 6 a.m. PT / 9 a.m. ET, with updates and announcements from PlayStation Studios and third-party partners. It will close with an extended look at Final Fantasy VII Revelation.
State of Play Japan follows immediately, again hosted by Yuki Kaji, with deeper looks at upcoming games from studios in Japan and elsewhere in Asia. Both broadcasts stream on YouTube and Twitch.
Sony has named only one game in the announcement: Final Fantasy VII Revelation. Everything else circulating as a supposed lineup should be treated as rumor unless Sony or a participating publisher confirms it.
Player.One already covered the schedule itself. This page has a different job.
The criteria are being published before the show. The grades go into this same URL live.
1. Does PlayStation Studios Show Something Substantial?
Pre-show grade: Pending
Sony explicitly says PlayStation Studios will be represented. The test is what that representation actually contains.
A dated gameplay demonstration, a meaningful update on an announced first-party project or a genuine new reveal would count strongly.
A logo, short cinematic or teaser that leaves the audience with almost no new information would not carry the same weight.
This category is intentionally about information rather than the number of first-party appearances.
What earns an A: substantial first-party footage or news that materially changes what players know about an upcoming PlayStation Studios game.
2. How Many Announcements Come With Real Dates?
Pre-show grade: Pending
A showcase can produce an impressive trailer reel and still leave viewers with no clearer idea of what they will actually be playing.
For this scorecard, an exact release date counts most. A narrow launch window, such as a specific month or season, counts partially.
"Coming soon" and completely undated reveals add very little to this category.
The question is simple: how many projects leave the broadcasts with a more concrete release plan than they had when the morning began?
That is measurable, which means the final grade does not have to rely on whether the trailers simply felt exciting.
3. How Much Of The Show Is Gameplay?
Pre-show grade: Pending
Cinematics can introduce a world. Gameplay answers questions cinematics cannot.
Sony specifically promises new gameplay during State of Play Japan and an extended Final Fantasy VII Revelation segment in the first broadcast.
Those are opportunities to show combat, traversal, systems and environments rather than leaning primarily on CG or mood pieces.
A high grade does not require every project to receive a ten-minute demo. It does require viewers to finish the morning understanding how several featured games actually play.
If the majority of major announcements remain cinematic-only, this score drops regardless of how polished the trailers look.
4. Does State Of Play Japan Feel Like Its Own Show?
Pre-show grade: Pending
Running two presentations consecutively only makes sense if the second one earns an identity of its own.
Sony says State of Play Japan will focus on creators in Japan and Asia and include deep dives, new gameplay and announcements.
That gives the format room to spotlight games that could receive less attention inside a single global presentation.
If it feels like leftover material from the first stream, the double-bill added length without enough distinction.
If it surfaces different studios, genres and projects while using the deeper-dive format Sony promised, the experiment works.
This grade is about whether the second broadcast justifies being separate.
5. Does Final Fantasy VII Revelation Justify The Extended Slot?
Pre-show grade: Pending
This is the one game Sony has positioned as a centerpiece.
The official Final Fantasy VII site identifies Final Fantasy VII Revelation as Part 3 of the FFVII Remake trilogy, following Final Fantasy VII Remake and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
Sony says the Sept. 3 State of Play will conclude with an extended look at its world.
More runway creates a higher bar.
A longer presentation should answer something a two-minute trailer could not, whether that involves world structure, combat, traversal, major locations or another system Square Enix is ready to explain.
The grade is not "does Revelation look good?"
It is whether the extra minutes produced meaningful new information.
What We Are Not Grading
Rumored games.
An absent Bloodborne, an absent Naughty Dog update or an absent surprise remake will not cost Sony points here unless Sony itself promised one before the broadcast.
That is deliberate. A scorecard built around anonymous leaks and fan wish lists would be grading Sony against expectations Sony never set.
Each category above will receive an A through F grade, a timestamp and a short explanation as the two broadcasts unfold.
The original criteria stay visible after the show so readers can see that the standard was set in advance rather than rewritten around the results.
Broadcasts begin 9 a.m. ET Thursday, Sept. 3.
