PlayStation 4 games can now be played on iPhone, Sony announces

'PS4 Remote Play' app can support external controllers – though not the console's own DualShocks

The new Sony Playstation 4 and Playstation 4 Pro are unveiled at the Playstation Theater on September 7, 2016 in New York (BRYAN R. SMITH/AFP/Getty Images)

PlayStation games can now be played on your iPhone, with the release of Sony's latest app.

It allows your iOS device – either an iPhone or an iPad – to talk to your PlayStation and show what would normally be on the screen. That means you can play PlayStation games wherever you are, connecting to the console over WiFi.

Then, players can control the game either by pressing virtual buttons on the screen or by hooking up a controller, which will be able to talk back to the PlayStation over the internet.

Third-party controllers are already made for the iPhone and iPad, and connect over BlueTooth. Sony made clear that won't work with the DualShock controllers that come with the PlayStation, however.

Using the new app requires that a player has a PlayStation hooked up at home, since it borrows the computing power from that console. But it means that users can play as normal even if they are not near it.

In addition to playing games, the "Remote Play" app will also allow people to join chats and use the microphone in their phone, for instance, or use the keyboard on their iPad to type information into the PS4.

The app is available now, for free, through the App Store. While it has been possible to use similar features with third-party apps, Sony's solution is the first time it has been officially supported for iPhone and also the first time it is free.

To use it, users need a device with iOS 12.1 or later, though Sony recommends that people use at least an iPhone 7, a sixth generation iPad, or the newer version of the iPad Pro. It also needs a fully updated PlayStation 4, an active PlayStation Network account, and high-speed internet access.

Not all games will work with the Remote Play app and it won't work over a mobile data connection, it notes.