UPDATE: SCEA has reached out to PSU to advise that "any plans for the speaker (or any other DS4 functionality beyond the menu-centric touchpad usage) is only exploratory at this time." Therefore, comments about speaker functionality in the original story below were either misspoken or misinterpreted, only indicative of the team being excited about ideas for the future. No special DualShock 4 functionality beyond the touchpad is confirmed for this year’s outing.
Original Story: In a roundtable interview about MLB 14 The Show, PSU learned that Sony San Diego has uses in mind for the DualShock 4 controller’s unique features.
However, the studio isn’t particularly keen on using things like the touchpad to reinvent the wheel–at least, not until next year’s installment. "We’re not using the touchpad for gameplay just yet," game designer Ramone Russell told PSU. "We have some really cool ideas. But in Replay Mode, in the front-end menu, that’s where you’ll use the touchpad this year."
Russell also confirmed that the studio has "something really cool planned for the speaker," but declined to give further details, saying, "I don’t think we’re announcing that just yet." My first guess was occasional commentary from coaches and players in the dugout, but we’ll have to wait and see.
When asked whether Sony San Diego has noticed the critical success of PS4’s first sports hit, 2K’s NBA 2K14, Russell replied, "We pay attention to all of the other sports games. They inspire us and it gives us something to strive to. We always want to be the top defender, the top sports game." NBA 2K14 uses the touchpad to reveal players’ Rhythm icons, which range from Hot to Frozen on shooting, ball control, and defense.
For more MLB 14 news, check out our coverage of new features, platform parity, and the PS4 version’s impressive graphics.