PlayStation 4 7.00 Revamps Party Feature, Remote Play, Rolls Out This Week

Sony is scheduled to update the PlayStation 4's firmware to version 7.00 this weekend. The patch will be available to all PS4 owners worldwide and just like always, it'll bring new features and functionalities to the table.

Sony Interactive Entertainment Content Director Sid Shuman posted on the company's official blog that the new update will include Party and Remote Play. The new Remote Play was teased in a previous entry back in June where Shuman and company asked for the help of PlayStation 4 owners (they called them System Software Beta testers) via their Preview Program.

The Program enabled PS4 users to have a first hand and “early access” to the revamped Party feature that increased the number of Party participants from eight to 16. The update also included improved audio for that all too important voice chat and the equally vital network connectivity.

Moving forward to the soon to be rolled-out update, Sony also worked on Chat Transcription Accessibility support, although this will only be available for PS4 users in the United States. This will be made available through the console's Second Screen App that players have downloaded on their Smartphones or other mobile devices.

“The new feature supports US English and converts party voice chat to text, or enables you to enter text that is read aloud to other party members,” the blog said, adding that those whose mobile devices are connected to their consoles during a Party will be able to see a new “Party Tab.”

Aside from the Party makeover, version 7.00 will also have Remote Play for players who want to stream their exploits on their mobile devices. The PlayStation 4 Remote Play app can be downloaded provided that their devices run on Android 5.0 or higher.

The Remote Play app for the iOS, meanwhile, has been updated. It will now display the controller “at all times” as well as lock the screen orientation.

In addition, PlayStation 4 users can opt use their DualShock 4 wireless controllers using Bluetooth on Remote Play. Android, iOS, Mac and iPad users can use this feature as long as their devices run on Android 10, iOS 13, iPadOS 13 or macOS Catalina.

One Reddit user also posted that version 7.00 will come with HDR configuration. A source said that this feature will benefit those who are struggling with a game's brightness, or if it is too dark.

It also relayed another Reddit post that suggested that Sony will no longer support Facebook on the PlayStation 4 starting October 7. Although Sony wasn't able to make an official statement regarding this detail, there are PS4 owners who have reported “seeing error messages” when they tried to share on the social media site.