During the keynote press conference in the early hours of the morning, Sony confirmed that its next-gen hardware, the PlayStation 4, will support video capture through the HDMI port. There were concerns that the company would omit the feature from its new console to abide by the stringent High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP), however, Brad Douglas – Sony’s head of third party relations – took to Twitter last night to confirm the news.
I think we just announced that we’re going to allow video capture of games over HDMI! “Details will follow soon.”
— Brad Douglas (@kazamatsuri) September 19, 2013
Previous reports had suggested that Sony would opt to focus on its internal video capture functionality; specifically the DualShock 4’s Share button, which can upload gameplay footage to platforms such as UStream and Twitch.tv. As of now, though, it’s clear that the PlayStation 4 will support third-party capture devices that have become fundamental devices for the YouTube community in recent years, such as the Elgato game capture card et cetera.
This is evidence of Sony listening to its gaming audience, after fans began to petition for the feature via various social networks. Whereas gamers were restricted to capturing footage through the component out port on the PS3 – an output that won’t feature on its console successor – the fact that users will now be able to capture extensive sessions of gameplay in high definition will appease the online community.
On the other side of the next-gen fence, Microsoft previously confirmed to Polygon earlier this year that the Xbox One will support gameplay capture via HDMI. In terms of the PlayStation 4’s online ecosystem, the company also touched upon the ability to use your real name as ID as well as your established PS username. Though many would have liked the option to change their PSN ID, Sony intends to accommodate the casual consumer with this method of identification. Masayasu Ito, the company’s console division chief, clarified the feature during the conference.
“Basically so far, PSN ID can be available under PS4, but there is a way we decided to do real name registration, is because we wanted to encourage casual users to join our world.”
The PlayStation 4 is slated for a November release in Western markets – November 15th in NA and November 29th in the UK, specifically – before arriving in selected Asian markets before the end of 2013. We understand that Sony’s console won’t debut in its domestic market until February, 2014.
Tell us, are you happy that Sony has addressed the video capture issue for its next-gen console given the importance of the Let’s Play market? Also, what do you make of the company’s approach to the casual market with the real name ID? Let us know in the comments below.