Sony is finally rolling out the PlayStation Family app for iOS and Android, a long-overdue tool that lets parents and guardians keep tabs on their kids’ PS5 and PS4 habits without needing to navigate console menus.
Parental controls on PlayStation consoles aren’t new. You could already set limits directly on the system. But the new app makes the process a lot less painful and way more convenient.
Through the app, parents can now see detailed activity reports, manage spending in the PlayStation Store, tweak privacy settings, and even approve those inevitable “just 10 more minutes” playtime requests with a single tap.
There’s also an onboarding experience that Sony calls “thoughtfully guided” (translation: hopefully less confusing than digging through console menus).
Once it’s set up, parents get real-time notifications about what their kid is playing, can deny or grant extra time remotely, and generally feel like they have some level of control in the eternal battle against “just one more game.”
In short, the app mirrors what was already possible on console, but with some nice perks that make it actually usable.
And let’s be real, most parents would rather handle settings from their phone than hover over the TV while their kid begs them not to press the wrong button.
Of course, Sony isn’t exactly breaking new ground here.
Nintendo launched its parental control app alongside the original Switch back in 2017, complete with a Bowser-narrated trailer.
Microsoft wasn’t far behind with its Xbox Family Settings app, which has been around for over five years. Sony is, well, fashionably late to the party.
While it took Sony some time to figure out that parents own smartphones too, it’s better late than never.
The PlayStation Family app starts rolling out globally today. If you don’t see it in your app store yet, give it a bit of time.
Is Sony’s PlayStation Family app a useful tool for healthy gaming habits, or will tech-savvy kids just find workarounds like they do with most parental controls? Should gaming companies focus more on building better self-regulation features into games themselves, rather than putting the burden on parents to monitor and limit usage? Tell us below in the comments, or reach us via our Twitter or Facebook.
