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E3 2015 Predictions: Sony

by Jeff Marchiafava on Jun 01, 2015 at 10:58 AM

We're ramping up to this year's E3 with our best guesses of what new announcements the show will offer fans. Today we train our crystal ball on Sony.

Sony Celebrates Its Own Birthday
The PlayStation launched in North America 20 years ago, which we're guessing will serve as a convenient wrapper for the company's press conference this year. Expect plenty of talk about Sony's history of innovation (leading up to new Morpheus announcements), sales dominance (expect plenty of boasting about how the PS4 is leading sales), and fan-favorite franchises as the company touts its own legacy and what's to come.

PS4 Price Drop
Sony's PlayStation 4 has a healthy sales lead over the competition, but the race is far from over. The Xbox One has outsold the PS4 during a number of months (including this past April), thanks especially to a temporary price drop during the holidays. We're guessing Sony will aggressively protect its lead with a price cut of its own, and what better time to announce it then during its own E3 press conference?

A Not-So Uncharted Path
Nothing impresses an audience quite like a Naughty Dog demo, and Nathan Drake's continued exploits have been the star of Sony's E3 press conference in the past. Expect another extended Uncharted 4 demo to demonstrate Naughty Dog's latest advancements and catch us up on what Drake has been up to. Maybe we'll finally get a glimpse of Elena?

More Third-Party And Indie Games On Parade
During a recent investor-relations presentation, Sony's Andrew House admitted that the PlayStation 4's first-party lineup is looking a little sparse. While this might spur the company to plan some big reveals for E3, it still needs to sell gamers on why they should pick up a PS4 this holiday. We expect Sony to flesh out its offerings with a number of third-party demos, along with exclusive content announcements (we're guessing more Destiny exclusives will be front and center). Sony's indie exclusives have continued to be a boasting point for the company, so you can expect the obligatory montage of upcoming titles as well.

Bloodborne Expansion Revealed
Maybe this one is wishful thinking, but Sony's Shuhei Yoshida confirmed that From Software is working on a Bloodborne expansion, and that we'll learn more about it later this year. There's no shortage of game shows that Sony could reveal it at, but so far Bloodborne is the crown jewel in the PlayStation 4's sparse list of exclusives. If Sony is light on announcements, showing off more Bloodborne could go a long way towards appeasing the masses.

More Morpheus Demos...And Little Else
Sony has fully embraced the VR craze with its own Morpheus headset, and we have no doubt it will make an appearance at the show. While we expect to see a variety of new and updated tech demos showcasing Morpheus' capabilities, we're guessing Sony will still be light on actual game announcements for the device.

Coming Up Next: More game announcements we might see...

Gran Turismo Back In the Spotlight
We know that Polyphony Digital is working on Gran Turismo 7, and that series mastermind Kazunori Yamauchi expects it to release in the next couple years. While not as sexy as Sony's more action-oriented franchises, a flashy demo with some of GT 7's shiny new cars would still be pretty cool.   

Sony Reminds Fans That Vita Is Still A Thing
While Sony can't completely shun its struggling handheld, we're not expecting any high-profile Vita reveals during its press conference either. We're sure to hear "also on Vita" a lot as Sony touts its indie lineup, but don't hold your breath for any bona fide Vita exclusives – though the exception could be a Tearaway 2. Speaking of...

Media Molecule Finally Reveals What The Heck It's Up To
One of Sony's most creative first-party developers has been conspicuously quiet since the launch of the PS4. Media Molecule teased some impressive user-creation tools when Sony first announced its current-gen console, but skipped last year's E3 after the launch of Tearaway. Perhaps Media Molecule is finally ready to show what user-content focused craziness it's working on?

A Trio Of Possible Teases
Media Molecule isn't Sony's only first-party developer to consider for a big potential press conference reveal. We know that Sony Santa Monica is working on a new God of War, and that Killzone developer Guerrilla Games is working on a new IP entirely. We also know that longtime PlayStation partner Quantic Dream is developing a PS4 title, thanks to a 2013 demo that featured this guy...

...So yeah, there's always that.

Powers Gets A Second Season
We expect Sony will once again want to boast about the extended PlayStation Network bonuses afforded to PS Plus members during its press conference, which will include a number of non-video game related announcements. We're guessing these will include a second season of Powers, which Sony will show off with an overly long trailer that's met with polite applause from the (captive) audience.

The Last Guardian Reemerges
Seriously, Sony: Fans have been waiting forever for you to "reintroduce" Team Ico's giant-monster-pet simulator, and the endless apologies and reassurances aren't cutting it anymore. This one isn't so much a prediction as it is a proclamation: Either re-announce and release the game as a PlayStation 4 exclusive, or finally kill that lovable beast off once and for all (like we totally know you're going to anyway!).

What do you expect/hope to see from Sony? Share your predictions in the comments below!