PlayStation’s Concert Sounds Cool, But Needs More Classics

One of the nice things about moving to New York City in 2023 is that I live in a place where cool things happen. So I’ve been going to more video game concerts, which were much more difficult to get to when I lived in the boonies. If you’ve never been to one, these shows fucking rule. I’ve even gone to shows for games like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth that I did not like, and Shovel Knight, which I hadn’t played in over a decade, and still had an incredible time. Now that PlayStation is holding its own concert, featuring music from The Last of Us, God of War, Horizon, and Ghost of Tsushima, I will finally get to go to a show featuring the scores of games I’m actually passionate about, and also Ghost of Tsushima. However, if we’re gonna call this “PlayStation: The Concert,” I have a big question for whoever’s putting the show together: Where is the retro PlayStation representation?
PlayStation: The Concert is bringing the music of modern PlayStation to a city near you. The show seems to be making multiple stops in several states, so if you can’t make it to one show, look and see if they’ve got another nearby you can swing. Alongside the aforementioned games which are headlining the concerts, they’ll also feature some selections from Astro Bot, Journey, Uncharted, Helldivers II, and Bloodborne. All good picks if you were wanting to host a tribute to modern PlayStation, but I gotta say, I’m bummed we’ve got nothing that debuted on the original PlayStation or even the PS2. Yeah, God of War started on the second console, but the only games featured in the trailer for the show are from the Norse-themed reboot on the PS4.
Where’s my Parappa the Rapper medley? What about the sultry tones of a Sly Cooper song? You just put out a Ratchet & Clank game on the PS5. Why are we forgetting the games that helped pave the way for the big prestige blockbusters? The show’s three months away, so there’s probably not a ton of time to shift the setlist around to spotlight older games. But it does feel a little ahistorical, and odd considering the company’s Game of the Year winner, Astro Bot, was obsessed with that history.
Anyway, I’ll still show up because I’d love to hear The Last of Us’ music performed live. If you, too, would like to see the show, presales begin June 18 and 19. The full list of tour dates is as follows:
2025
- Oct. 9, Williamsport, PA, Community Arts Center
- Oct. 11, New York, NY, The Theater at Madison Square Garden
- Oct. 12, Reading, PA, Santander Performing Arts Center
- Oct. 14, Charlotte, NC, Ovens Auditorium
- Oct. 15, Richmond, VA, Altria Theatre
- Oct. 16, Baltimore, MD, The Lyric
- Oct. 17-18, Washington, DC, The National Theatre
- Oct. 19, Hartford, CT, The Bushnell
- Oct. 21, Grand Rapids, MI, DeVos Performance Hall
- Oct. 23, Huntsville, AL, Mark C. Smith Concert Hall
- Oct. 24, Atlanta, GA, Fox Theatre
- Oct. 28, St. Louis, MO, The Fabulous Fox
- Oct. 29, Des Moines, IA, Des Moines Civic Center
- Oct. 30, Kansas City, MO, Muriel Kauffman Theatre
- Oct. 31-Nov. 1, Chicago, IL, Cadillac Palace Theatre
- Nov. 2, Columbus, OH, Palace Theatre
- Nov. 4, Huntington, WV, Joan C. Edwards Performing Arts Center
- Nov. 5, Cleveland, OH, KeyBank State Theatre
- Nov. 6, Louisville, KY, The Kentucky Center
- Nov. 7, Detroit, MI, Fisher Theatre
- Nov. 11, Red Bank, NJ, Count Basie Center For the Arts
- Nov. 13-14, Boston, MA, Boch Center Wang Theatre
- Nov. 16, Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia Presented by Highmark
2026
- Jan. 23, Springfield, MO, Juanita K. Hammons Hall for Performing Art
- Jan. 24, Dallas, TX, Majestic Theatre
- Jan. 27, Little Rock, AR, Robinson Center
- Jan. 28, Sugar Land, TX, Smart Financial Centre
- Jan. 29, Austin, TX, Bass Concert Hall
- Jan. 30, El Paso, TX, Abraham Chavez Theatre
- Jan. 31, Phoenix, AZ, Arizona Financial Theatre
- Feb. 1, Las Vegas, NV, The Smith Center
- Feb. 3, Salt Lake City, UT, Eccles Theater
- Feb. 4, Boise, ID, Morrison Center
- Feb. 7, Seattle, WA, The Paramount Theatre
- Feb. 9, Portland, OR, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
- Feb. 10, Sacramento, CA, Memorial Auditorium
- Feb. 11, Los Angeles, CA, Peacock Theater
- Feb. 12, Costa Mesa, CA, Segerstrom Center for the Arts
- Feb. 13, Riverside, CA, For Theater
- Feb. 15, San Francisco, CA, Golden Gate Theatre
- Feb. 18, Spokane, WA, First Interstate Center for the Arts
- Feb. 20-21, San Jose, CA, San Jose Center for the Performing Arts
- Feb. 22, San Diego, CA, San Diego Civic Theatre
- Feb. 24, Denver, CO, Buell Theatre
- Feb. 25, Omaha, NE, Orpheum Theater
- Feb. 26, Minneapolis, MN, Orpheum Theatre
- Feb. 27, Ft. Wayne, IN, Embassy Theatre
- Feb. 28, Indianapolis, IN, Murat Theatre
- March 1, Milwaukee, WI, Riverside Theater
- March 4, San Antonio, TX, Majestic Theatre
- March 5, Ft. Worth, TX, Will Rogers Auditorium
- March 6, New Orleans, LA, Mahalia Jackson Theater
- March 7, Jacksonville, FL, Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts
- March 8, Clearwater, FL, Ruth Eckerd Hall
- March 11, Raleigh, NC, Memorial Auditorium
- March 12, Columbia County, GA, Columbia County Performing Arts Center
- March 13, Wilmington, NC, CFCC’s Wilson Center
- March 14, Orlando, FL, Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts | Walt Disney Theater
- March 15, West Palm Beach, FL, Dreyfoos Hall
- March 17, New Philadelphia, OH, Performing Arts Center – Kent State University at Tuscarawas
- March 18, Midland, MI, Midland Center for the Arts
- March 19, Dayton, OH, Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center
- March 21, Newark, NJ, New Jersey Performing Arts Center
- March 22, Hershey, PA, Hershey Theatre
- March 24, Toronto, ON, Massey Hall
- March 28, Waterbury, CT, Palace Theater
- March 29, Brooklyn, NY, Kings Theatre
- April 7, St. Johns, NL, Mary Brown’s Centre
- April 9, Halifax, NS, Scotiabank Centre
- April 11, Moncton, NB, Avenir Centre
- April 13, Montreal, QC, Place des Arts
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