State of Play 2026 viewership sets record, with God of War Laufey leading PS5 games

A May 19th announcement allowed hype surrounding State of Play 2026 to build for two weeks. That excitement culminated in the highest viewership to date for the PlayStation showcase. Streams Charts revealed that it accumulated a peak of over 3 million live viewers, topping the June 2025 event.

Why did so many gamers tune in?

YouTube trailers for PS5 exclusives like Marvel’s Wolverine and God of War Laufey are now attracting the largest audiences. Kicking off and closing the broadcast, they helped generate more than 4.4 million hours watched. Streams Charts credits more content creators co-streaming the spectacle for contributing to the impressive performance.

The recent State of Play ranks higher than its June 2025 competition, which reached a peak viewership of around 2.25 million. Next is the February 2026 bonanza at 2.2 million, with the January 2024 showcase further behind at 1.63 million.

Critics have complained about the slow pace of new PS5 exclusive games. It’s not surprising then that a pair of first-party titles continues to receive the most attention. In pole position on the PlayStation YouTube channel, the God of War Laufey trailer has notched 5.2 million total views.

God of War rules again

Since the unveiling of the Santa Monica Studio project, the limited role of Kratos has disappointed some fans. Instead, his late wife Faye/Laufey faces off against enemies in the afterlife. The mixed reception may be reflected in a like/dislike ratio of 341K to an estimated 178K. Nevertheless, most analysts anticipate strong sales on its rumored 1st-half of 2027 release date.

Gamers already knew that Marvel’s Wolverine would attend the State of Play 2026. The gory presentation delighted Logan supporters, with the trailer's view count second at 4.8 million. The non-stop violence wasn’t controversial enough to earn a high percentage of dislikes.

About 20 PS5 games in total were on display during the PlayStation broadcast. Until Dawn 2, Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, and Silent Hill: Townfall are among the other most popular videos. Still, none come close to matching the views of the new God of War game or Marvel’s Wolverine.