PlayStation is removing the ability for users to share clips to Twitter directly from their consoles, greatly impacting a lot of communities’ abilities to share content.
In a post on the PlayStation website, they confirmed that starting November 13th, PS4 and PS5 consoles would lose their ability to post to Twitter.
“As of November 13, 2023, integration with X (formerly known as Twitter) will no longer function on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 consoles. This includes the ability to view any content published on X on PS5/PS4, and the ability to post and view content, trophies, and other gameplay-related activities on X directly from PS5/PS4 (or link an X account to do so”, the statement reads.
While never officially given as a reason, it’s very likely that the decision was moved by Elon Musk’s prior decision to start charging for use of the Twitter API- essentially paywalling any external access to the app.
Posting To Twitter
That’s not to say posting clips are gone forever, however.
PlayStation has also listed out the new method for players to post their footage to Twitter, though it involves use of the PlayStation App.
Users will simply need to enable Captures and link their consoles to the PlayStation App, and then post to Twitter from there.
Posting clips to Twitter is about a lot more than just sharing sick headshots- the 8th Generation of console gaming was almost defined by its focus on social content, with Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo all featuring consoles with capture tools and instant sharing to social media.
Communities like the one for fighting games in particular use these tools to share tips and tricks for specific characters with each others, with a whole system using Hashtags for specific games and characters.