Sony patents a dedicated rewind button to save us when we suck at gaming

Save state functionality has been part of the emulation scene for many years but it seems that it may make the move to consoles. A recent patent made by Sony outlines a future version of the PlayStation controller with a dedicated Save State button, per a legal document spotted on PatentScope by the folks at Tech4Gamers. An exact quote from the document states, “The user is able to enter the rewind mode from the live game play using one or more controller inputs to view recent game play (e.g. rewinding, fast-forwarding, playing, etc.) and returning to live game play afterwards.” Keep in mind that not all patents become real products.

To users of various emulators, this descriptor of a “rewind mode” recalls the save and load state functionality common to those applications. Even Nintendo Switch Online’s retro games support save states and brief rewind windows, these days. Instead of setting this functionality to a key bind like on PC emulators or a custom button combination like on Switch, though, Sony is looking to implement a dedicated button for this specific functionality, likely within immediate proximity to the D-Pad.

Outside of official and unofficial emulators, there are some other uses of save states in gaming— and not just regular old save files. One of the most interesting examples of this has to be Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, a 2003 action adventure game originally released for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Nintendo GameCube in November 2003. That game’s titular sands of time mechanic allowed players to reverse time to undo unfortunate deaths to the game’s many enemies and environmental hazards, quite similar to how system-level save state functionality often allows users to rewind death or other mistakes in emulators.

Of course, it’s worth noting that such a button like this, even implemented system-level, simply will not work with all games. For example, multiplayer titles that rely on synchronizing game states between players, servers, or both won’t allow for functionality like this. A dedicated button like this would only be usable in single-player games, and some fans may even argue it would taint those experiences— particularly Soulsborne fans and their devotion to a static difficulty.