[NewsPoster]

As promised, Sony pushed out the latest PS4 firmware earlier today. Packed with a number of new quality-of-life features, such as the ability to appear offline and receive notifications when certain friends come online, the v3.50 update (codenamed MUSASHI) has been greatly anticipated since it was first announced back in February. While there are many benefits for fans of the Sony console, the most anticipated change comes in the form of expanded Remote Play support, bringing the ability to play games remotely, by streaming the video to OS X and Windows computers. As good as all this sounds, what really matters is how well it works in the real world. We have spent a few hours playing around with the new feature and are ready to share some of our initial thoughts with you.

While previous versions of the Playstation firmware allowed gamers to stream supported PS4 games to the Playstation Vita, Playstation TV and Android-powered Xperia smartphones, the limited controls and screens found in these setups were far from ideal. Sony is looking to solve this issue by opening Remote Play up to any computer running OS X 10.10, OS X 10.11, Windows 8.1, or Windows 10. Simply download the free companion app to either your desktop or laptop, plug in a DualShock 4 controller, and start playing your favorite games away from your regular setup.

Let's start with initial setup: if you have used Remote Play in any capacity before, this process will feel very familiar. Launch the Remote Play software, connect a controller, and log into your Playstation Network account. That's really it. As long as your PS4 is associated with the same account it will quickly be found, and within about a minute the PS4 display will pop up on your computer.

From here the quality of your experience will largely depend on your internet connection and home network quality. Our test setup consisted of a PS4 hardwired directly to the network, and a 2014 Retina MacBook Pro connected wirelessly to a Linksys' EA6500 router. Our PS4 was instantly found by the Remote Play software and within seconds the PS4 dashboard was up on the MacBook screen.

By default the software is set to a resolution of 540p with a frame rate of 30fps, and viewing this on a Retina display was far from impressive. Hopping into the app's preferences and bumping the resolution up to its max setting of 720p made a huge difference, however, and is highly recommended if your entire setup can handle it. Along with resolution settings, the preferences also include an option for bumping the streamed frame rate up to 60fps, although doing this will disable the PS4's gameplay recording features whenever Remote Play is active.

Playing on the MacBook at home on the same network was an enjoyable experience, with input lag almost non-existent, but still present. When playing single-player adventures, such as The Last of Us, you will not likely notice this lag, but move to a fast action shooter like Destiny or Call of Duty and it starts to show up and become a factor. These games are still perfectly playable, but competing in the multiplayer environment at any sort of a competitive level becomes extremely difficult. We should also note that a lot of fast motion on screen seemed to result in some image pixelation, but again, for casual play this really didn't ruin the experience.

This was very much a best-case test though, so how does the software hold up in a less optimal setup? In order to test this, we headed down to our local Starbucks and left the PS4 at home. After connecting to Starbucks' Wifi (and ordering a drink) we booted up the Remote Play software and attempted to connect to our Playstation, which was left in Rest Mode. The connection process took a little longer here, though it was no more than a couple of minutes before we were fully connected and viewing the PS4 dashboard on our MacBook Pro. Video lag was a little more noticeable here, but games were still perfectly playable even at the max resolution setting.

If you are simply looking for a way to continue games when your main display is otherwise in use, then Remote Play is a fantastic option. It is easy to setup, simple to use, and in our brief testing, very stable. Those of you thinking that this will further open the PS4 world to mouse and keyboard input can also take a step back, as the Remote Play software requires a DualShock 4 connection for play. As soon as the controller is disconnected, Remote Play drops the connection to the PS4.

Streamers, however, might find an additional use for the software, as it could be used to inject gameplay into a live stream. While lower quality than a capture card, such as the Elgato HD60, the Remote Play could be window captured by OBS, while you continue to play on your main display.

Who is Remote Play for:
Anyone who needs to access their PS4 when their main display is otherwise unavailable, will love not only the freedom Sony's new Remote Play software brings, but also how smoothly the entire system works.

Who is Remote Play not for:
If you are planning on playing any sort of competitive gaming, then you are going to want to avoid Remote Play due to the small amount of video lag it introduces, and stick to a wired HDMI connection.