Today, Sony announced the first major software update for the PlayStation 5 console, which will be arriving tomorrow. The update delivers a handful of new improvements for game management and social features, and it will be available tomorrow.
The most notable addition is likely the ability to store PlayStation 5 games on external USB storage. Because PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S have SSDs and a new storage architecture, games can"t be played off of slower external storage, but Microsoft"s console has always given you the option to store them there until you"re ready to play. Sony is now catching up and enabling that feature on its own console.
What"s not being added is the ability to use an M.2 SSD. Sony opted for a standard format for its SSD storage expansion as opposed to Microsoft"s proprietary expansion cards, but it says it"s still working to enable the feature. In the meantime, you still have to play PlayStation 5 games off of the built-in storage.
Social features are also getting improvements, with Sony enabling cross-generation Share Play. That means a PlayStation 5 user can now invite a friend on PlayStation 4 to watch a game session or even take control of a PlayStation 5 game from their own console. Additionally, it"ll be possible to request to join a friend"s game session on either PlayStation 4 or 5.
Sony is also updating the Game Base UI to give quicker access to parties and friends, as well as adding the ability to turn notifications on or off for each party the user is in. Additionally, it will be possible to disable game chat entirely or to individually adjust the chat volume for each of the players in your group chat.
Other improvements include the ability for games to automatically download update data in the background so they"re ready to play when the user boots them up, a more customizable game library with the ability to hide or search for certain games, and new Trophy settings as well as a new Trophy Stats screen. For users with special accessibility needs, there"s also a new screen magnification option.
Outside of the PlayStation 5 itself, Sony has also announced updates for the PlayStation app on Android and iOS. The company recently added the ability to save products to a wishlist, get notifications for when friends are online, and change a console"s online status. Soon, it will also add the ability to join a PlayStation 5 multiplayer session, manage the console"s storage, and compare trophy collections with friends, all inside the app.