Get ahead of the game by adjusting settings on #playstation 4 and #playstation 5 consoles for you or any of your family members.
There are so many reasons to love video games, and all of them are wonderful. Games are fun! Games let us win, and some of those victories are hard-fought. We can escape through the games we play – visit a world, inhabit a character, or experience something profound that may not be easy to reach in our daily lives. Games can connect us – with people we love, with powerful experiences from our past, or to a world of other players. And games can give us the freedom to do so much, even if that is just being yourself.
When it comes to interacting with each other online, we want to ensure a welcoming and joyful experience for all players, regardless of age, on our #playstation platforms, including those most vulnerable. All players deserve to have fantastic social experiences where respect and safety are mutual – and the good news is that we provide you with the tools, so you or your family members can take control of your #playstation gaming experience.
At Sony Interactive #entertainment, we gather insights and feedback by working with various specialists, including our Employee Networks, industry partners, and experts, as well as listening to sentiment from our community to continuously examine and improve our tools and policies.
In this blog, I’ll share five ways to adjust your settings and take control of your gaming environment and experience when playing online. Using these tips, you can be confident that you and your family are having the most fun possible while on #playstation Network.
1. Get familiar with the rules. With #playstation, we aim to ensure a welcoming and respectful experience for all players from the moment you join our platforms. You can find more information about our policies such as the PlayStation Network Code of Conduct and the PlayStation Network Policy Against Hate Speech on our website. We want to ensure that #playstation Network (PSN) is the best place to play for everyone, and to do that, all users must respect the rights of others. When creating an account (including a Child account), all users agree to follow the rules set out in the Code of Conduct.
We have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to hate speech – there are no exceptions for using hateful language or slurs in any form and our moderation teams are reviewing every case reported on our platforms.
2. Adjust your settings to take control of who you want to interact with. When it comes to taking control of your online experience, there are two main features at your disposal:
Block feature: If player communication becomes disruptive, this feature gives you the power to stop it immediately, or prevent it from the beginning. When you block a player, you won’t receive friend requests, messages, or invitations to games from each other. Blocked players can’t view your profile, posts, or personal information. They also can’t add you to parties, watch your broadcasts, or your game screen during Share Screen.
If you decide to give someone another chance, you can also unblock that person. Remember, you are in control of your experience!
Privacy settings: With this feature, you can limit how visible you are to other users on PSN using privacy settings. You can customize the following features:
If you’re a #playstation 5 user, you have access to four preset profiles in your privacy settings. You can choose one from the below options that work best for you:
3. Take advantage of our Parental Control feature as Family Manager. PS4 and PS5 both offer parental controls to help parents feel confident and in control of their children’s gaming experience. Parental controls set by the family manager will override any privacy settings selected by a child account. Options allow parents, for example, to set spending limits, adjust time settings, restrict communication, block #entertainment by age rating, or accept or reject Ask to Play. Our youngest gamers can enjoy their own fantastic adventure with #playstation, but the parents get to create that map, and ensure it’s just right for your children’s needs.
4. Know how and when to report. If something still happens after controlling the environment as best as possible, players can report inappropriate behavior. When considering this option, please remember:
5. Find your next gaming adventure. As listed above, our consoles provide many options that allow you to choose the settings that work best for you or your family, so that only leaves you with one additional consideration: What games to play? Finding a video game to play can sometimes be an overwhelming task especially as a parent, but there are great platforms like the Family Video Game Database which provide you with additional insights. Here are also some of my personal favorites that I enjoy playing with my family, friends, the #playstation community, or sometimes by myself:
We all play a part when it comes to our interactions online, and taking control is a first step. Let’s work together to create a joyful experience for all players. As an avid gamer and mother myself, I hope my tips are helpful for navigating your own experience, or the experience of your children, on our #playstation platforms.
© Copyright 2024