One of my favorite innovations of modern gaming is the ability to stream what you’re playing to your smartphone, whether from the cloud, your home consoles, or a PC. Streaming transforms your phone into a Nintendo Switch-like portable that can play games from every system it can connect to.
We’ve covered how to do this using official apps from Sony, Microsoft, and Steam, but there is an unofficial third-party Android app called PSPlay that PlayStation fans should consider, as it’s better than the official PS Remote Play app from Sony.
PSPlay works just like Sony’s PS Remote Play app, but is faster to set up, more reliable, and includes important features missing from PS Remote Play.
There’s one caveat: PSPlay costs $4 on Google Play, while Sony’s PS Remote Play app is free. Some may balk at the idea of spending money on something Sony freely offers, but PSPlay’s features are worth paying for.
G/O Media may get a commission
I bought PSPlay after discovering PS Remote Play doesn’t support third-party controllers, which is primarily what I use when gaming on Android. You can use a DualShock 4 or DualSense with either app, but PSPlay also supports third-party options like the Razer Kishi.
(Both apps offer touch controls but, c’mon, no one wants to play with shoddy on-screen buttons.)
Don’t get me wrong, I love the DualSense, but I find controller cases like the Razer Kishi are better suited to handheld play, and PSPlay is the only way to use them with PS4 and 5 games.
PSPlay also connects to your PS4 or PS5 much faster than the official PS Remote Play app. It can take up to three minutes for my PS5 to recognize my phone through PS Remote Play, but it usually only takes a few seconds through PSPlay.
PSPlay also lets you play over a mobile connection, while Remote Play only works over wifi. That means PSPlay can stream games from your home to your phone while on the go, while PS Remote Play will only work while your phone and consoles are on the same wifi network.
In fairness, I haven’t noticed any difference in latency or streaming quality between PSPlay and PS Remote Play on wifi—which is how I play the vast majority of the time. Both apps work great if you have a strong wifi connection, though you may notice a brief input delay if the connection isn’t strong. Still, input delay is worse when playing PSPlay over mobile. It’s probably best to stick with wifi unless you’re one of the few folks with 5G coverage, but the ability to play over mobile still gives it the edge over PS Remote Play.
