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Sony Giving Developers Control Over Share Button

by Mike Futter on May 06, 2013 at 09:44 AM

After the glee surrounding Sony's PlayStation 4 share button came down a bit from its initial fever pitch (admittedly, it's still pretty high), savvy gamers started to realize that there might be drawbacks. We fully expect members of the press to be subject to embargoes and NDAs on use of the feature, but what about when gamers get their hands on titles early? Are we doomed to a generation of spoiler overload?

Thankfully, according to an interview with Shuhei Yoshida conducted by Japan's 4Gamer.net (and translated by Edge), our delicate eyes and ears might be safe from the corrupting influence of information excess. During the conversation, Yoshida indicated that Sony is handing over control of the Dual Shock 4's Share button to developers. 

The idea is that developers will be able to lock out the feature during moments they don't want shared online. Final boss fights, key plot moments, and even special easter eggs could be subject to the freeze depending on what's desired from the studio.

That still won't prevent footage from legitimately acquired early copies from making their way online. However, a server-side blockade or a day one patch to enable the feature might help keep gamers from accidentally witnessing something that would ruin their experience with a title.

[Source: 4Gamer via Edge]