Finally, it has happened! Cross-play has been enabled for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC! While this may be old news to some, it’s still an exciting chapter in the history of gaming. Granted, more patience is needed as this is quite a big step for the virtual world; as well as Sony the Giant only recently announcing that their cross-play has “come out of the beta phase”, and it was not a cheap decision to make, because titles needed to be recoded to allow it.
If you’re a noob, like me, your first thought might be that you can get the same game for a different platform; e.g: GTA5 on both PS3 and PC, but this is not the case. Cross-play is not to be confused with cross-gen. Cross-play is for online gaming only, where it allows PC servers to match up with consol servers.
This being said, there are a few games with limited compatibility, as in, PS4 not being compatible with PC or Xbox One, etc. But judging from the response of the developers and community, it won’t be too long until the bugs are squashed.
A few titles which have cross-play compatibility:
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare – this is the most recent title which has been enabled
- PUBG
- MineCraft
- Fortnite – rumor has it that this title not only has cross-play, but it also will allow players to access their profile across different platforms. That’s right! No more having to make a different account for each device. And we thought Fortnite were the bad guys…
- Aragami
- Ark: Survival Evolved
- Dick Wilde 2
- Final Fantasy XIV
- Paladins
These are just to name a few. There are more titles available, and the above are just some of the more popular ones which have spearheaded (and I use this term loosely) the next step in online gaming.
So what does this mean for the gaming community as a whole? Well, it means that leagues can expand (and play possibly become more intense), but it also might in turn put more stress on servers which may result in a longer waiting time to enter a tournament or battle. All in all, it’s a positive move in a very competitive industry.