Sony has released an updated PlayStation App, which has been “reimagined to enhance your gaming experiences on both PS4 and PS5″. The app is due to roll out today through updates on iOS (12.2 or later), and Android (6.0 or later) mobile devices.
New features on the app include voice chat, which will allow players to create party groups via the app, voice chatting with up to 15 friends at one time through mobile devices. Furthermore, Sony claim it will be “listening and evaluating” to players’ feedback to changes made in the software’s 8.00 update for parties.
The PS Store has been updated too to enable “fast and smooth shopping and browsing, with the ability to remotely download games and add-ons directly to your PS4 and PS5.”
Players can remotely launch games and control their console storage, as well as sign in to the PS5 directly from the app (once the next-gen console launches). An explore tab will distribute regular news updates from game developers and content from the PS Blog, keeping users in the loop on all things PlayStation.
The app includes an updated user interface, a new home screen, and quick access to your data on recently played games and trophies list. Plus, messaging is easier than ever before with a new PS messages feature. Sony says PS messages “will no longer be available as a standalone app.” Any existing chat data will be carried into the updated PS app.
Elsewhere in PS5 news, Sony unveiled the new PlayStation 5 media remote, with dedicated buttons for top streaming platforms including Disney+, Netflix, Spotify, and YouTube. From launch, Sony’s next-gen console will further support Twitch and Apple TV.
The remote has built-in play/pause, fast forward and fast reverse controls, and will allow players to adjust volume and power settings on compatible TVs. Plus, Sony has improved the console’s interface, speeding up the process of switching between games and accessing online matches, by rebuilding “the entire software stack from the console to the network,” bringing players “a truly next-generation experience.”
