Matthew DeCarlo
We might only be right around the corner from the launch of Sony’s PlayStation 5, but it’s apparently never too late for the company to teach its old console some new tricks. Starting next month, Sony will begin selling a new accessory that adds buttons to the back of the PlayStation 4’s DualShock 4 controller.
Known simply as the “Back Button Attachment,” the new accessory will go on sale in North America on January 23 for $30 and in Europe on February 14 for €30. The add-on attaches to the connector port on the bottom of the DualShock 4 controller and wraps around behind the gamepad where it places two new buttons along with an OLED display.
The newly added buttons have a large paddle or bumper-like design that should be easy to activate with your ring finger (or some other finger that is behind the controller). Both buttons can be configured to your liking, which is to say that they can be set like any other buttons on the DualShock 4 controller.
And you don’t have to settle on just one configuration. Sony notes that its new accessory remembers up to three different profiles and has a dedicated button for toggling between key mappings on the fly depending on what you need at any given moment. The built-in OLED screen on the attachment displays real-time information about these button assignments so you can see which profile is active and how the accessory’s buttons are configured.
That OLED screen also makes it easy to configure the Back Button Attachment using your preferred settings without having to open up some separate utility on the PlayStation. The device is powered straight from the DualShock 4 and it has a 3.5mm headphone jack for audio passthrough so you won’t be giving that up by using this add-on.
This product comes at an awkward time in the life-cycle of current-generation consoles. Microsoft has already unveiled its next-gen Xbox Series X for holiday 2020 and the PlayStation 5 is expected to arrive around the same time. While we’re still awaiting a fuller reveal on the PS5, Sony recently shared details about the DualShock 5 controller, which will feature new haptic feedback technology along with “adaptive triggers” to enable better game immersion.
