Despite a rumour that's been circulating the Internet, Sony's upcoming PS4 won't place any draconian HDCP restrictions on gameplay video capture, and will allow users to capture footage directly from the unit via HDMI.
This was confirmed by Sony's head of third-party relations via Twitter.
I think we just announced that we're going to allow video capture of games over HDMI! "Details will follow soon."
— Brad Douglas (@kazamatsuri) September 19, 2013
So, what does this actually mean, and why should you care? Well, basically it means that you won't have to come up with convoluted ways to record and share your footage outside of the PS4's share button functionality. As well as the built-in function, which will share footage through Sony's online services (and was previously thought to be the only option), you'll be able to capture video any way you like via HDMI, using other capture devices. This is great news for machinima makers, and those that like to edit and create their own videos.
The PlayStation 4 will be released in the US on November 15 and in Europe on November 22.