A new firmware update for PlayStation 4 owners is on the horizon, and is now available to select folks involved in the beta. Dubbed "Kenshin," Update 3.0 promises to pack a whole bunch of awesome new features Sony fans have been anticipating for quite some time.
What awesome new additions are included in the new update? Well, I'm glad you asked! Online storage capacity is getting a sizable boost, as well as support for livestreaming gameplay to YouTube and a new hub for events. And that's only the tip of the iceberg!
Here's the full breakdown of what's featured in "Kenshin," courtesy of PlayStation Blog:
- Online storage capacity increase — PS4 online storage capacity has increased from 1GB to 10GB for all PS Plus members. In 3.00 system software, you’ll see that we added a handy usage meter to monitor your available storage capacity, and a new Auto-Upload menu has been added to Application Saved Data Management.
- YouTube live — PS4 owners will be able to livestream gameplay to YouTube. Livestreams will be viewable across YouTube, including on the new YouTube Gaming mobile app and website.
- Events — A new hub for events has been added, giving an overview of activities taking place in the games you play most, as well as official broadcasts. For instance, you may see an update for a Double XP weekend, a special enemy appearing at a scheduled time, or seasonal events like in-game towns being decorated for the winter. You’ll also receive notifications when the event starts, or if the timing changes.
- Favorite Groups — Favorite Groups has been added to the Friends app, letting you quickly access groups of people you like to play games with frequently. This will make the process of getting a game session up and running even easier.
- Communities — PS4 users will have the ability to create communities based around shared interests, like games, genres, and more. Communities include a message board with general discussion, screenshots shared by players, and the ability to join parties / games. If you want to tackle a big multiplayer raid, but don’t have enough friends available, this could be a great way to connect with other players who are looking for the same thing.
- Sharing video clips to Twitter — Users will have the ability to share video clips directly to Twitter. Maximum video length is 10 seconds, though you’ll have the ability to trim longer clips.
- Stickers — Tired of typing out messages? With this update, you’ll be able to send stickers to friends through your messages.
- Now Playing / What’s New — The Now Playing screen will display even more information about what your friends are doing, and you’ll be able to quickly jump into a game, party, request a screen share, or get sent to the PS Store to buy the game your friend is playing – further enhancing the social relationship with your friends online.
- Live from PlayStation — We’ve improved the Live From PlayStation app, making it easier to view popular trending broadcasts in real time.
- Request to watch gameplay — Want to view a friend’s gameplay session? Now you can send a ‘Request to Watch’ notification to a player, which will start a live broadcast or Share Play invitation to the person playing.
Sony says there's even more included in the update, but we'll hear about it at a later date. There's no confirmed release window for a widespread release either, but it surely won't be long until we can circle a number on our calendars.
With the launch of YouTube Gaming, this couldn't be rolling out at a better time. Gameplay sharing is only growing in popularity, so it should come as no surprise that the vast majority of the update's new additions are social-centric. Which new addition are you most excited for? Honestly, the online storage boost of PS Plus members tops the list for me.
