Home Gaming Here’s how PS4 SharePlay works

Here’s how PS4 SharePlay works

3 min read
43

Cher

The PlayStation 4’s great big Masamune update is hitting your console tomorrow, and one of its biggest features is something that Sony calls SharePlay. It’s a confusing feature that not too many people seem to understand – so Sony’s explaining it as a “virtual couch”.

It’ll allow you to beam your games to your friends through the internet, and let them help you in tough spots, or let them join as your co-op partner for hour long sessions – even if they don’t own the game. Here’s what you can do, according to Sony:

  • Share Screen: Share your screen with a friend, allowing them to spectate. This is ideal for PS4 owners that want to watch their friends play a game and provide helpful tips. PlayStation Plus is not required to use this.
  • Hand over my controller: Pass your controller to a friend, virtually, and watch them play. Your friend does not need to own, or even download the game, in order to use this feature. This is perfect for introducing your friends to new games. The host will need to be a PlayStation Plus member, but the guest does not.
  • Hand over another controller: If a game supports local multiplayer, you can have your friend join as player two. Again, the visitor does not need to own, or download the game in order to use this feature. Both players will need PlayStation Plus to use this feature.

I’ve got to be honest. With our low upload speeds, I just don’t see this working very well here in South Africa. Still, if it’ll let me play the amazing Towerfall: Ascension over the internet, I’m certainly keen to give it a try.

It’s a feature that’s coming in tomorrow’s update, along with a host of other things that don’t include DLNA support – but will let you play music from your USB storage media. Here’s what else you can expect from tomorrow’s update.

  • USB Music Player: PS4 owners can play their own music in the background while playing a game using USB Music Player*. After inserting a USB stick loaded with music into the PS4, a new option for USB Music Player will appear. Supported filename extensions include MP3, MP4, M4A, and 3GP.
  • Change colors: In addition to the ability to add a theme, PS4 owners can also change the background of the home screen from light blue to one of seven new colors: gold, blue, red, green, purple, pink, and gray.
  • Players You May Know: PS4 will now suggest players you may know in the ‘What’s New’ section, recommending gamers your friends frequently play with.
  • Enhancements to Live Broadcasting: Masamune brings a variety of improvements to live broadcasting on PS4. In the Live From PlayStation app, PS4 owners can now select a Featured channel, which includes official broadcasts from PlayStation, broadcasts from people on a players friend list, and any game channel that the player has followed. Additionally, Live From PlayStation now has filters for searching broadcasts on a specific game, as well as support for archived broadcasts.
  • Content Area and Library: PS4’s Content Area, which shows the latest games and apps a PS4 owner has used, has been redesigned to help make it easier to quickly find and access content. It now shows 15 of a player’s most used apps or games, and additional items will be added to a player’s Library. The Library on PS4 has improved filter and sort functions to help organize contented by type (game / app / TV & video), name (a – z or z – a), recently used, or install date.
  • Enhanced Voice Commands: The ability to control PS4 using voice has been improved. Players can now say ‘PlayStation’ to begin commands, and ‘All Commands,’ to see a list of all voice command options available. New voice commands were added for live broadcasting, including “Start broadcast,” “End broadcast,” and “Find face.”
  • Add To Library: The monthly free PlayStation Plus games will have an ‘Add to Library’ button in the PlayStation Store. This button will add a game to a PS4 owner’s library without downloading it – saving space on their hard drive.

Last Updated: October 27, 2014

43 Comments

  1. Sting-Ray

    October 27, 2014 at 12:36

    Horrible header image. Shocker. But then PS4 owners probably love Cher…

    Reply

    • Cadis Etrama Di Umar

      October 27, 2014 at 12:37

      Fucking love Cher. musical genius

      Reply

      • Admiral Chief 0

        October 27, 2014 at 12:54

        Interesting choice of words…….

        Reply

    • Brady miaau

      October 27, 2014 at 12:38

      Ah, but how old do you BELIEVE the header image is?

      Reply

      • Brian Murphy

        October 27, 2014 at 12:50

        • Exalted Overlord Geoffrey Tim

          October 27, 2014 at 12:51

          LOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

          Reply

          • Brady miaau

            October 27, 2014 at 12:53

            Why are you laughing? Do you admit that the pic you used was airbrushed? Vanity Fair and Cosmo and now you? Where does it end? Where does it all go?

          • Sting-Ray

            October 27, 2014 at 12:57

            Don’t forget You magazine. Next he’ll be telling us that actually LG doesn’t have consoles, they just pretend to for publicity purposes.

        • CAE9872

          October 27, 2014 at 12:52

          whahahahahahaha

          Reply

        • Brady miaau

          October 27, 2014 at 12:52

          Ouch. Sunblock would have been helpful

          Reply

          • Brian Murphy

            October 27, 2014 at 13:05

            It’s called embalming fluid, that really helps keep that youthful look.

        • Sting-Ray

          October 27, 2014 at 12:52

          I believe that!

          Reply

        • Sageville

          October 27, 2014 at 13:03

          OUCH!

          Reply

        • Sageville

          October 27, 2014 at 13:23

          If Cher and Ryan Cruywagen had kids….1st Immortals eva!

          or

          1st synthetic human eva!

          Reply

          • eyesuc

            October 27, 2014 at 13:33

            Yeah, Cher even sang about it:
            If I could turn back time

    • Brian Murphy

      October 27, 2014 at 12:47

      Frankly, the wrong person got into a skiing accident, not that I found Sonny to be any more enjoyable. But, I’d bet good money Sonny would never have made a ‘comeback’ with an auto-tuner.

      Reply

      • Sting-Ray

        October 27, 2014 at 12:49

        Auto-tune should be banned, and those that use it should have a double-tap in the back of the head execution style. I’d rather listen to pigs being slaughtered inhumanely, or about 100 cats in heat in a 3×3 room.

        Reply

        • Brian Murphy

          October 27, 2014 at 12:51

          No no no, you’re looking at this wrong, there’s a really good opportunity here. All auto-tuners should be loaded with a shaped charge, after 2 hours of use, it blows the head off the user. Problem solved. Or better yet, make it variable, between 30 mins and 2 hours, just so people are too afraid to ever use one again.

          Reply

          • Sting-Ray

            October 27, 2014 at 12:53

            Great Idea. Now how do we get that retro-fitted into all Antares products?

          • Brian Murphy

            October 27, 2014 at 12:54

            Dunno, claim there’s a new exciting model? It’ll make even the most decrepit 85 year old has-been 70’s sex symbol sound like a 14 year old robot?

  2. Hammersteyn

    October 27, 2014 at 12:58

    So I can advertise my service for those Weekly strikes in Destiny? For a small fee of course

    Reply

    • Ir0nseraph

      October 27, 2014 at 13:00

      O I see , and I thought we were friends :), The bill is probably stuck in the mail and since the postal office is broken that’s one bill I won’t see soon.

      Reply

      • Hammersteyn

        October 27, 2014 at 13:01

        No, see you can at least carry yourself in a fight. Except raids of course 😛

        Reply

        • Ir0nseraph

          October 27, 2014 at 13:02

          Hey as soon I get raid boots , my jumping will be sorted 🙂

          Reply

          • Hammersteyn

            October 27, 2014 at 13:22

            I do think it’s a lot easier with the Titan class, timing doesn’t need to be perfect. you can just glide down if you jump to early.

          • Nikola

            October 27, 2014 at 13:32

            NO way hunter with triple jump is so easy @ir0nseraph:disqus is just horrible at jumping but I must say he is improving. Oh also don’t make me remind u again clan page confirm for raid;)

          • Hammersteyn

            October 27, 2014 at 13:57

            I’m always there, you and I know it by now 😀

          • Nikola

            October 27, 2014 at 13:59

            I know i know btw on a totally unrelated thing you are going over the ledge in tonight’s raid;) Again lol

          • Hammersteyn

            October 27, 2014 at 14:28

            XD

      • Sageville

        October 27, 2014 at 13:01

        @Ir0nseraph:disqus when they bring back the 1c coin we can finally make accurate payment for @hammersteyn:disqus skills ;P

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          October 27, 2014 at 13:02

          XD

          Reply

        • Nikola

          October 27, 2014 at 13:32

          LOL!!!

          Reply

  3. Sageville

    October 27, 2014 at 13:00

    Article Summary: “Still no Pause Download button”

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      October 27, 2014 at 13:02

      Or mp3 player 🙁

      Reply

      • Brian Murphy

        October 27, 2014 at 13:03

        Uh…what?

        USB Music Player: PS4 owners can play their own music in the background while playing a game using USB Music Player*. After inserting a USB stick loaded with music into the PS4, a new option for USB Music Player will appear. Supported filename extensions include MP3, MP4, M4A, and 3GP.

        Can’t copy the files over, but I’m pretty sure I see MP3, Music Player, right there.

        Reply

    • Brian Murphy

      October 27, 2014 at 16:19

      FYI, just saw on Twitter that Pause Download may in fact be in this update, don’t take this as official yet, because as usual for an update this size, Sony hasn’t iterated every single feature, just the bigger ones.

      Reply

      • Sageville

        October 28, 2014 at 13:32

        HALAAALA!

        Reply

        • Brian Murphy

          October 28, 2014 at 15:23

          I take it, this pleases you 😀

          Reply

          • Sageville

            October 28, 2014 at 21:28

            It’s the small things….

          • Brian Murphy

            October 28, 2014 at 22:50

            heheh, it’s strange everything was going fine with the update until around ~3pm EST this afternoon, then PSN went down. So strange that everything would be fine until then.

  4. iReviewit

    October 27, 2014 at 13:21

    I see what you did there!

    Reply

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