Why Do We Care About Cross-Play?

Let's recap the whole cross-play thing. Why is it such a big deal, anyway?

[lxeasy]

Because it unifies gamers and allows quick and easy access to online matches since there is never a shortage of gamers on the game.

[ThinkThink]

Last night my son had a sleepover with 3 of his friends. It was cool watching the 3 of them plus my younger one all playing fortnite together. 2 on Xbox's and 2 on switch. Reminded me of the halo lan party days shouting to your buddy from another room.

[lxeasy]

Oh that was a lot of fun I remember those days in college with friends lol

[MuddyWaters]

That's what it should be all about, having fun together.

[ZeroX9876]

16 tents with one xbox in each of them and an additional tent in the middle with a large 20 port switch in it.... Those were the days! :)

[ILostMyMind]

I've had this experience sometimes. That's great. My friends and I playing together in the same space ... all of us on PS4.

[Skull521]

Because I shouldn’t have to buy 4 copies of a game so I can play with all my friends. One should suffice.

[Goldby]

@Skull

well where was your outrage when fortnite was originally released on xbox and didnt offer crossplay with ps4?

why all of a sudden is it an perceived issue

[Skull521]

Do you guys really believe that for my goal of playing minecraft with all of my friends I should have to pay $300 for a PS4, $300 for a XB1, $300 for Switch, $500 for an entry level PC, and 4 copies of the game at $20 a pop?

$1480 to play minecraft with all my friends, that sounds reasonable to all you anti-crossplayers?

I won't single anyone out, but as a collective group you're all idiots.

[No Way]

Muddy - Can you imagine a world where there are 18 "GAMERS" who would disagree with having fun?

Not to mention the 67 "gamers" who would disagree with allowing "quick and easy access to online matches."

What a sad state gaming is in...

[PoopsMcGee]

The only way I would be okay with cross play becoming the standard is if it is isolated to private matches ONLY.

Sounds so warm, nice and cuddly for us all to hold hands and game together but, for me, cross play is another step towards the all-out demise of online multiplayer.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

God, I miss Lan gaming, good times with friends, Xbox was also good fun when we all piled into someone's house to play Halo.

[InactiveUser]

Even playing field > crossplay. If it's a co-op game, ok.. But no I don't want crossplay on 'competitive' multiplayer. Let's play competitive basketball in real life, but my side of the court has a bigger hoop, shorter FT and 3pt line, I can move faster and dribble faster. I'm taller and can jump higher. Your side of the court has a crowd of people trying to distract you, but I turned foliage off so my side is silent and still. I can see my giant hoop very clearly. I'm excited for crossplay basketball, how bout you?

[Gr8saiyaman88]

Did you just get downvoted like crazy by all the Sony ponies here for proving the benefits of cross-play? xD

[NecrumOddBoy]

If MS was the #1 selling system, do you really think that they would be so cool with cross-play??

They caused the debacle of having to pay to play online, the soul starters of exclusive content and DLC purchasing, plus trying to implement DRM into gaming. They are not Pioneers they are just drowning business people who are grasping for any bit of relevance and survivability

[PoopsMcGee]

...and it further ruins the integrity of console multiplayer by introducing another disparity between players in a match, splits the community for those not wanting to play with other consoles/PCs (thus, making it harder to find a match for some, ironically), causes network issues on one platform to become an issue with other platforms, etc, etc...

Cross play has its drawbacks - just nobody is mentioning them.

edit/ Oh, and, all of these are issues I've personally experienced with Rocket League PC/PS4 cross play. So don't say I'm pulling them out of my butt...

[Obscure_Observer]

@PoopsMcGee

Nobody said it have no issues. The truth is the positives overcomes the negatives by far!

[PoopsMcGee]

@ Obscure

Not for me. I never have problems finding a match in the games I play.

Cross play is a very imperfect solution to a problem that I don't have.

[eternalarsenal]

@imgumbydammit sorry but there was crossplay last gen. final fantasy 11 had cross play with ps2 ps3 xbox 360 and pc. We all got a long just fine with out any issues. Notice how ff14 is out and there no xbox one version at all this time around. Ps4 and pc crossplay with 78 gsmes. Xboxing one has 34 ctossplay games.

[No Way]

You likely wouldn't have any idea that you are even in a cross-play match, though...

[PoopsMcGee]

@ No Way

Not true for Rocket League. You can tell quite easily who is on PC versus PS4 (anyone with PSY NET instead of a profile pic is PC). BTW, unless you find the option and turn off cross play, I'd say easily over 90% of the matches are cross play by default.

Anyway, the before mentioned issues still remain regardless of whether the player is aware or unaware of the situation...

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

I already mentioned the difference in specs several times before, that's why we don't have crossplay with games like Overwatch, although its a competitive E-sports game so that makes sense. But you could counter with the wide variety of specs between PC, although if you playing competitively you'd be buy the best parts you possibly could.

I don't really care either way to be honest, all my friends own PS4s, very few own Xboxs, a few own Switches but they're playing different games to everyone else. Would like to play with the small number of PC friends I have but again, we're generally playing different games.

[Mr_Writer85]

Like Obscure said no one claimed it was perfect.

Also they're issues that can be resolved and fixed.

"splits the community for those not wanting to play with other consoles/PCs (thus, making it harder to find a match for some, ironically),"

How do you work that out? If EVERY game was CP then they'd have no choice but to adapt or only play exclusives multiplayer or no multiplayer at all.....

[KillBill]

Point being you can choose to play with other systems or not.

[NeoGamer232]

Also, it provides gamers with more confidence to choose what platform they would prefer over the platforms that their friends buy.

[RememberThe357]

Best argument I've heard so far. I had a group of friends that all bought Xbone because our one friend was getting an Xbone for his achievements and they wanted to be able to play FIFA and Duty together. Most of those guys wanted a PS4 but went with the platform their friend had.

[No Way]

@dekke - apparently you aren't paying attention. There are GAMERS (not fanboys) on the playstation side that wants it to happen, too. I for one, would love to be able to play with people on the xbox one and the ps4. I have a friend who only owns a PS4 - but yet I can't play with them. Because, why? It's definitely possible.

[xX-oldboy-Xx]

If my friends chose to play on an MS system, they're free to do so. I'll just find news friends within the online space.

Whoever 'follows' what other people do, needs to grow a pair and start making choices/decisions for themselves.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

Most of my friends converted to PS4 early one, especially after the fiasco that was the Xbox reveal, pretty much all of us ended up on the same console and a few more converted after owning Xones for a while.

[NeoGamer232]

@xX-oldboy-Xx
Some people have friends in real life that are gamers too. Very close friends and often they like to play games together. So, they typically have all ended up buying the same console because that is the only way they can still play together. With crossplay they can choose the console they prefer (and it may not be the same as their friends) and still play online together.

I still don't understand why give gamers choice is bad. A lot of people are arguing against it for absolutely no reason. Crossplay is good for gamers, bad for console vendors that want to dominate the industry. That is the only group that loses with crossplay, the vendors that want to dominate the industry and make it more difficult to switch console platforms if you are unhappy.

[Obscure_Observer]

@lxeasy

Well said! :)

[yeahright2]

Seriously dude, enough with the kiddy insults.

[sanlee]

tbh, the only reason I bought a ps4 is bcuz it's the only console with a healthy online population on fighting and football games, if they enable cross play on every game going on. i'il just sell my ps4 and never buy a console again. And i think they know that there are online communitites that are only available on the ps4

[S2Killinit]

because we are told to care about it by articles.

[cactus1230]

i own a ps4 and have plenty of people to play with. i dont want to play with xbox or nintendo gamers.

[trooper_]

You weren't talking about unifying gamers last gen. Y'all were bragging about sales and trashing the PS3.

Turning a non issue into a pandemic.

Unbelievable.

Unless crossplay is a 'must' throughout the industry, then it holds little value.

[Alucard_420]

It doesn't unifie gamers, you still have to pick cross play match up, what happens if no one wants to cross play match up, are developers gonna force that on me??? I don't want to play PC players on shooters, secondly too many cheaters on PC.

[n1kki6]

Only on n4g where does a post get downvited 3 to 1 that 100% accurately represents why people want crossplay

[sprinterboy]

Unifies gamers? You mean getting hate speech from fanboys spouting out shit on there mics across other platforms. I think the party group is a safe bet of course but I only think it's good for some of the smaller games which have a smaller fan base ie I never once found a single player to play super sprint mp with on the ps3 never mind a 4 player race 😔

[strayanalog]

Better question: why not care?

Seriously, is there a problem with unifying an online front? The only difference anyone can say are exclusives it seems to me, and typically most online titles hit all systems anyway.
We may carry a different flag, but it doesn't mean we can't kill each other maturely while forging new friendships.

[lxeasy]

Exactly

[PoopsMcGee]

See my above post for some problems with unifying on an online front. I have issues with cross play myself and it has nothing to do with console warrior nonsense.

The Cons far outweigh the Pros for me.

But who am I anywho?

[strayanalog]

I see your point, and that's valid.

If the online front was unified more steps would definitely be taken to ensure better servers and less network issues, because it would be a combined effort. We're gamers, technology gets better all the time and we know this more than most - sure, it's walking not running - but it still moves forward. The unified effort is only certain developers on PC, Nintendo, and Microsoft right now, but with added help from Sony there could be huge strides in how we play online.
It's also possible that with enough time there may be some console fanboy walls brought down because then it won't matter what choice you made - or your friends - because you could still play together.
I don't believe cross-play should be forced, but it should be an option we all have since we're paying for online. Why not have another feature? The more the merrier comes to mind when I think about cross-play, and as I've said for many years: we're gamers, and the flag we carry shouldn't matter when we all are a part of the same club. After all, Xbox Live wasn't built in a day and it truly is time to "live in your world. Play in ours."

[Lord_Sloth]

I don't care because it's something I wouldn't really get any use out of. That said I wouldn't oppose it because it doesn't affect me.

[ThanatosDMC]

Or just buy PS4s. You support Sony and everybody is happy. You cant add people on Party Chat who are in a different console.

[bigmalky]

Yeah... Maturity from users between Xbox and PS4.

Are you new to forums?

[GUTZnPAPERCUTZ]

My Buddy bought ARK on Steam after me, my GF and 3 other friends bought it on Xbox, I rented a server and allowed "Cross Play" option for Windows Gaming, I told him about it and he got refunded through steam since he didn't play at all yet and bought it for Windows and no we all can play! That alone made me appreciate cross play!

[JackBNimble]

Did you know I can play ark on ps4 with people on pc? Just putting that out there.

[thejigisup]

Parity

[kevnb]

Other than system war type forums nobody even talks about it.

[Shiken]

Funny thing is, it does notjing to the X(2). If Sony still says no, X(2) will have no one to cross play with. The Switch struggles with current gen multiplats, so next gen is out. At that point Nintendo is no longer a factor in cross play.

So either both the PS5 and MS have it next gen, or no one does. Both already do PC and mobile, so either way MS will have nothing to offer without a another console to cross play with.

[ThatOneRiggaNob]

The Switch only truly needs to offer it for the smaller games that they do get in terms of power like fortnite or the new pokemon like game that's coming out. We all understand that Switch can't handle all of the current gen multiplats but the shared titles that have some type of mp could still be a plus.

[subtenko]

lol that would be something

[Gardenia]

Exactly. Who is "we" anyway? Most really don't care, including myself

[Skankinruby]

'We' don't actually care that much, at all. It's a pointless feature, and it's clear as day why Microsoft is pushing the agenda for sony to get on board. If people are teetering on a console choice they wanna eliminate the 'well all my friends play ps4 so I guess I'll just go with that' mentality and make xbox a valid choice in spite of that. But ultimately it makes absolutely no difference in online play at all.

[yeahright2]

That's what it boils down to right there. "we don't trust sony's network", "we can't do it because of the kids.", both BS excuses. It boils down to the top dog not wanting you to buy the competition's product.

[subtenko]

No its Sony who doesnt trust Microsoft....thats the thing. RIghtfully so too

[Tobse]

Its pointless? Looks like Gaming isnt something you care about. This would be a gamechanger for indie devs. They dont have to shut down servers for games that arent well populated on each platform. Getting all gamers together would be better for every game

[AspiringProGenji]

Then tell indie devs to make SP games if they can’t sustain themselves with MP games. Or, how about make a good MP game and not an OW or fortnite clone? Rocket League devs did something original and they succeeded. Cross play won’t save a bad or knock off game

[Goldby]

"They dont have to shut down servers for games that arent well populated on each platform."

instead they keep the servers open for just a little bit longer before closing them down.

crossplay wont save a bad game, and if a game cant gain and retain players, no amounts of crossplay will save that.

case and point, would lawbreakers still be around if it were crossplay... nope. neither would radical heights or probably the culling 2

[Tobse]

You guy act like only a Handfull of devs suffer from this. Its a big Problem and its sad most are forced to make sp games. Most games have a Hardcore fanbase that sticks with it, now add this fanbase from all 4 platforms and you have a healthy playerbase again

[SuperSaiyanGod41]

ToBse

And name me how many games are crossplay with Xbox and switch? I bet u can't name more than 10 out of 10,000 third party games out there. So again why is it so important again? Now when u can crossplay with almost every multiplatform game then u will have a valid argument but right now it's not that big a deal.

[Rachel_Alucard]

@tobse

That's purely speculative, LB on PC alone had less then 10 players, so by your logic adding another platform would suddenly bring it up to healthy numbers? Cross-play, F2P, and cheap prices won't suddenly give bad games healthy numbers.

Just look at Mirage on PC. It was doing so poorly they gave it away for free for a day and permanently its price heavily and it still died at less then 100 players. Same with Evolve, Deformers, etc. Bad games do not keep player retention just because it's there.

[No Way]

How in the WORLD is it pointless? Why is it clear as day? Enlighten me, why don't you? Not everyone can afford both systems. Allowing more people to play one game is better for EVERYONE. Hell, you could even say that players on PS4 would benefit more than xbox one players.

Seeing as PS4 has so many more exclusives - if you are playing Call of Duty with 5 million players and then God of War releases and now you're playing with 3 players. Good luck.

[trooper_]

It's pointless because it's not widely requested.

What part of this do you not understand?

[SilentSolid]

Cross play is always a positive thing as long as non of the platform has a huge advantage. + it helps small games with their player base.

It's time for you to swallow your pride.

[Cmv38]

If it dies, it dies

[yeahright2]

Dolph? is that you?

[morganfell]

+1 for the Drago reference.
+2 for not caring about crossplay.

[LoveSpuds]

Personally, I feel that the whole issue has been blown out of proportion for the most part.

The reason MS and Nintendo are suddenly so keen is because their own user bases are so limited in comparison to Sony's. Early on in the last generation, when MS were in the driving seat, they didn't want to know either. The fact is, generally speaking if you are in a dominant position why would you want to give your competitors access to to a userbase you have worked so hard to cultivate.

For me, the only thing Sony have mishandled is the messaging, they should be honest and come out and explain that there are legitimate business reasons for not exploring the possibility of crossplay.

[aConIsDemocracy]

How come all this fuss wasn't made when ms refused it ? I'm dying to know. Ms has done bugger all this gen and now Sony is the bad guy just for crossplay. There's a lot more to gaming than crossplay. Sony have shamed ms this gen and this is all they have left to score points against them. Thats why we don't want it. It's not because crossplay is bad but because ms have latched onto it to make Sony look bad.

[jznrpg]

I don’t

[KwietStorm_BLM]

-Because with consoles, it keeps games alive and relevant a lot longer than they historically have active servers. This isn't an issue on PC. If PS4 were backward compatible and if crossplay were a universal thing for all connected third party games, all old games from last generation would immediately become relevant again, and with a lot of people.
-It would invite entirely new opportunities for the industry like unique tournaments and universal community generated content, if server side.
-Maybe a reach, but if all platforms are playing on the same server, it could possibly even have an effect on timed exclusive DLC, as that would not be in the best interest of publishers.

None of this is hurting you as a gamer. Nothing. Anyone who disagrees or keeps saying over and over that PS4 doesn't need more players, you're just being a cheerleader. You do not need to be on the front lines for a corporation. Cooperation from PlayStation does not take away the substantial breadth of exclusives they put out, all year round. It does not instantly make PS4 and PS4 games any less appealing.

[yeahright2]

I agree with you quite a bit. I've been saying all along that it's about money. It was money when MS did it last gen and it's money now that Sony is doing it this gen. But allow me to point out another reaching point to go with your first. Isn't keeping multiplayer, MT and loot box filled games alive and relevant for longer going to help push the industry even further towards GaaS? If we buy fewer games because we only play one or two a year, wouldn't that give devs pause before trying something new and innovative?
It can be a double edged sword. Much like when we demanded all games always stay at $60 no matter what. By doing that we invited sesaon passes, and content being held back for dlc. None of these companies are really looking out for us, so we gamers need to be thinking 2 steps ahead before grabbing the pitch forks and torches.
Not saying crossplay is bad, I think it's mostly good. Just saying like many things, there's good and bad that can come as a result.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

I get your angle, but that's like saying that loot boxes and micro transactions are an understood prerequisite. It's not synonymous with multiplayer. And we've shown at times, when people actually stop and use their heads, that pubs will listen when enough people do speak up by not buying in. Microsoft also changed their tune after that embarrassing Xbox reveal. It's a shame others only applaud everything that a company does.

[yeahright2]

touche
Though I will say it's becoming synonymous with multiplayer by leaps and bounds. even more so now than just a couple years ago.

[Hardiman]

I'm all for GAAS, loot boxes and microtransactions dying!

[yeahright2]

The majority don't. I'll bet you a wooden nickle that the majority of gamers don't even know what crossplay is. Only the hardcore (like people that visit gaming news sites) know of it, and even among them, it's only a small percentage that see it as a big deal (I'd wager a hefty part of said percentage are xbox fanboys just looking for a win over Sony) But for the most part, even among those that know what crossplay is, the reaction you get is "oh, that'd be cool. oh well, not a deal breaker."

[Artemidorus]

Provides more players and longer popularity.

[Goldby]

wont save games that would be dead anyways.

and besides, whast to stop companies from shutting down servers to push the new game once BR modes are in the past.

[Artemidorus]

This is not true, servers in the past have been held if popular or people make private onea so the option is open to more if available.

[Goldby]

But private servers supplied by players after the game isn't Continued isn't crossplay though.

Again you said if popular. Crossplay won't take a bad game and make it great, it would have been popular before crossplay

[Artemidorus]

It makes more players available to play. I never mentioned bad games, you did.

As for the private servers this again is proof people are not finished playing with something.

You can disagree all you like but I've seen continuation of games due to more connectivity.

[Goldby]

@Artemidorus

you mentioned popular games, if a game is popular it doesnt need crossplay, if a game wasnt popular crossplay wont change that.

again, a bad game (or unpopular) wont suddenly become great and popular because of crossplay

[Sm00thNinja]

We don't.

[CrimsonWing69]

Because it'd be cool to play a game on our platform of choice and still play with friends who chose a different platform?

[ILostMyMind]

When you choose your platform, you choose the friends with whom you would play with. It was always your choice.

[CrimsonWing69]

Um, except I live in the real world where that makes absolutely no sense. I have plenty of friends that prefer an Xbox One over what I prefer yet we have the same games... so cross platform play would let me play with them.

[ILostMyMind]

@CrimsonWing69
What doesn't make sense is you want something that doesn't exist. There is no CPP between PS4 and XBO and this was never promised.

[TheEnigma313]

Sony just do crossplay so these people stop whining. Just add a PS4 players only option when online.

[Goldby]

sony already does crossplay. more than xbox one and switch combined

[TheEnigma313]

I'm just sick of these articles. It's getting annoying.

[ILostMyMind]

They will when they want. Just like MS did. And Sony don't need to listen this 'whining', It is not from their consumers.

[TheRealHeisenberg]

I'm one of Sony's consumers and I would love for there to be crossplay with the other consoles so I can play with my friends on those. I'm not whining about it though. Just because you may feel strongly against it doesn't make those that want it whiners.

[TheRealHeisenberg]

I'm on PS4 and would love crossplay with that option too. That does not make me and others that want it whiners.

[BlaqMagiq1]

It is a good feature to have, but it's not a deal breaker for me. While it would be nice for every game to have, gaming will still go on if it never happens.

[Einhander1971]

I don’t give a monkeys

[DialgaMarine]

I don’t. If it’s there, cool; if it’s not, whatever. It’s just another thing for people to cry about.

[Snakeking33]

Most don’t this is only a thing because Microsoft is losing this gen who really cares about cross platforms play when there is easily enough player on your console. Plus where were these articles last gen when Sony wanted cross play and Microsoft shut it down talking about how it would jeopardize Xbox live I wonder how many people forgot about that

[Cheesetoenails]

I think that having all platforms being able to play with each other is a great idea. It wont matter who is on what console. You will still have your exclusives that separate those that want a particular console. I choose to play all my multiplats on my X, I still have the option to have my exclusives on the others. Everybody still wins. I don't care how much $$ Sony/MS/Nintendo make. Most people want it, so why not give it? nothing to lose really. Outside of this site the majority of consoles owners want it.

[AmUnRa]

"Most people want it". (Crossplay) .
Thats not true it is just a minority, so your "most people want it" is far from the true.

By the way, every time i see your nickname (Cheesetoennails) i feel like i must throw up.😝

[Tazzy]

I don't care for it to be honest but some people do and that's fine the thing I don't understand is when you make an account on a playstation console you're able to use a Microsoft email I use mine. I I look at it like this if Sony doesn't want cross-play then why allow people to use Microsoft accounts on playstation consoles??

[FGHFGHFGH]

It's just an email to contact you. PSN and LIVE are competitors and you have to pay money to play mp games. Users are a source of income and since most multiplat multiplayer games are bigger on PSN, it is a big advantage for sony. If people want to play with their friend on ps4, it's money for sony. Should they let xbox live players play for free when ps customers pay?

[Skuletor]

Ironically, Free to play games like Fortnite are actually free on PSN, Xbox puts them behind a pay wall.

[Tazzy]

I have Xbox Live and Playstation plus and neither are free they cost everyone money to use the services people would be using their Xbox Live to play Playstation users and vice versa. Gamers like cross-play my point is they shouldn't let people use Microsoft outlook accounts on Playstation if they're not for cross-play to me it's like doing cross-play is to unite gamers.

[Skuletor]

@Tazzy What next? We can't use Gmail emails for other consoles when Google releases their new console either?

[ILostMyMind]

What? 😳

[AspiringProGenji]

If Sony doesn’t want to share their player base with their competitors they are in their right. This is just another overblown issue just like BC.

I find it hilarious how many out of a sudden, 5 years after PS4 and Xbox were released, want to play with their “friends” on the opposite console. Shouldn’t you be doing so by now if you really wanted that? Or don’t tell me you still stayed loyal to MS after so many fk ups this gen and refused to buy a PS4 regardless of friends. Now you want to play with your friends and want to put the blame on Sony for being able to do so?

I may be generalizing here but that is what it sounds like to me reading some of the comments that always bring their “friends” into the crossplay debate.

[Cheesetoenails]

I may be generalizing here but that is what it sounds like to me reading some of the comments that always bring their “friends” into the crossplay debate

ummm crossplay is about playing with friends on different consoles/PC etc....soooo I am not too sure what you are getting at. If you don't want it, fine with me, but would enabling it really hurt in any way to the consumer? , Outside of this site, the majority would like it as an option..

[ILostMyMind]

This wouldn't hurt consumers, it isn't them who is not allowing this feature. This hurts the company and that company said "no, not now. Maybe tomorrow". Those who live in reality understood that and moved on. Who has a fanboy agenda is doing an article about it every day.

[FGHFGHFGH]

How come no one makes a big deal about no crossplay with steam for pubg? If you do a search you'll see that a lot of players want it and the developer also wants it. Or what about call of duty from windows store can't even play with other pc users. Surely you don't think activision did this because they wanted to?

https://motherboard.vice.co...

[rainslacker]

And yet very few games allow you to connect, much less interact with your friends on other systems.

@ILost

if this really hurts the companies that say no, then let them be hurt. Stop the concern, because if time will bring remorse,then so be it. Let Sony deal with the consequences. There doesn't need to be 2-3 articles a week, followed by copious repetition in the comments section where the issue gains no ground, and everyone just gets pissed at everyone else.

Eve if Sony is somehow hurt in all this, so long as they continue to deliver the games, they'll have me as a customer. There would have to be a huge shift in the market for that to happen, and as of now, there is nothing to suggest that cross-play is enough of a consideration to in any way affect console sales, thus it is unlikely to affect console support.

For an issue that is supposedly about bringing people together, those that want it sure seem hell bent on making it extremely divisive.

@FG

Because PC players don't seem to care that much, and those that say they care, don't actually wish to bring that up because it hurts their argument that Sony is evil and Spencer is the gaming messiah.

[aConIsDemocracy]

Well said. The truth.

[Vithar]

we don't

[Sayai jin]

Why are people so defensive...

[Sayai jin]

I must have hit a nerve. I enjoy my PS4 Pros and the experience I get on it, but I don't mind fair critism.

[spartan112g]

I don’t get this whole “it doesn’t matter” narrative. Ive wanted this for forever. I would love to play Fortnite, COD, and Destiny with my PS4 friends since I will not buy those on my PS4 since shooters feel much better on the Xbox and, no, I will not use a CronusMax. I prefer everything about my Xbox, but some of my friends prefer the PS4. Would love to be able to raid with those friends. Add on top of that having to make another Guardian or make another Fortnite account isn’t worth it.

[ILostMyMind]

No. You should prefer your friends on XB too.

[TheRealHeisenberg]

I wish I could block you on PSN. What is your PSN ID?

[PlatinumGX]

No one cares about it.

[TheRealHeisenberg]

I'm on PSN and I do.

[GameGod26]

You truly don’t tho you didn’t care in 2013 and you don’t care now be honest with yourself man.

[TheRealHeisenberg]

@GG26

You speak for yourself. You don't dictate what I did, do, or don't care about. I would have welcomed crossplay between consoles in 2013 just as I would welcome it now.

[GameGod26]

Yea but you phony as shit tho and it’s super transparent I don’t know you personally so I’m only speaking gaming. But you know damn well you never gave a single shit about it like most gamers until the end of generation being now. You were gaming just fine before lol and you know it. But now it’s this huge inconvience

[TheRealHeisenberg]

@GG26

You think I'm phony because you don't like my position on this. Just know that I don't care. I would have welcomed it back then just like I would now. Playing D1 (before I quit), 2K, Madden or BF against friends on other consoles would have been great.

The only thing you are correct on is that I continued gaming just fine without it. That in no way changes the fact that I would have welcomed the option had it been available.

[IGiveHugs2NakedWomen]

I don't and most gamers don't.

[Lynx0207]

We don't.

[Lexreborn2]

I don’t care

[zachyBROosevelt]

It's not

[Anthropophagic]

For me.. more than anything, it can extend the life of a game.

Especially with the seasonality of a lot of games now, going back to an older title often leads to empty lobbies.

With cross play, those small pockets of players holding on, can add that much more life to a game.

[FallenAngel1984]

Better question would be why does dispatches tend to have clickbait most of the time

[Kokyu]

We dont. The vast gaming consumer doesnt.

[gammaray13]

i dont give a flying toss about it

[Neoprime]

Because it leads to cross-dressing.

[Eiyuuou]

I don’t, actually.

Not gonna turn it down, if given the choice though.

[chris235]

we don‘t. minus a small group of people.

[Dizzy11523]

I just want to play Paladins with as many people as possible.

[isarai]

It's cool i guess and would help with server population to ensure more consistent matchmaking in the later years of a mp game. but personally it doesn't effect me much seeing as how i barely play online mp game to start with

[Horseygamer]

yes i care, it will be the biggest thing since universal metric mesurment i belive it could even push the industary in to new ip's and and builld a bigger community!!

[Elda]

Could care less.

[bigmalky]

We don't, sod off.

[corroios]

Because Sony doesnt cares and some need something to attack. Keep pumping this, because it wont Change nothing.

I like to read some here talking about unifies gamers, lol. When the reality is Just a lie.

[ZombieKiller]

I don't care too much for it. I have both consoles and play online on both. Although it would be nice, there is no need to take jabs at a company for making the choice not to. If a company wants to do their own thing, if they think that is the best way for them to be successful, then so be it. No loss to me. I don't really see what the big deal is honestly.

[WitcheRivia]

Because it's an option that some people want and the people that don't want it aren't forced to use it. SFV has cross-play with PC & PS4 for example but you can choose not to use it & only play with the people on your platform. The people that are against cross-play are the same type of people that want soda banned just because they don't drink it & because they don't drink it, they don't want anyone else to drink it either.

[GameGod26]

Or they just don’t care about it 🤷🏽‍♂️

[SegaGamer]

"Why is it such a big deal, anyway?"

It's not. The media are making it a bigger deal than it is. Outside of fanboy arguments, i haven't seen a single person make a big deal out of it. It's not even a topic that get's bought up unless the media make an article about it.

[Ristul]

I'm starting to Think that this is a big PR push from Microsoft.

[AmUnRa]

And that is why whe reading the one after the other opinion piece about crossplay for weeks and i not want to know how many opinionpieces with the same crossplay b*s*t....talking about beating a dead horse🙄
By the way i dont care about crossplay with MS and Nintendo. I have enough friends on my list that i can play with ore against on PSN.. More than enough.

[xRacer74x]

Im not a Sony fan. That being said I know I could care less if they do cross play or not same with the other consoles I have never had an issue finding a game on Xbox Live I do not game online with Sony but I presume they have plenty of people online. Not sure what the big deal is. I guess I could see where Switch needs the extra player base doubt many owners take the switch online and even less use it as a main console so multiplat titles take a hit on it.

[SkippyPaccino]

Microsoft & Nintendo have much to gain and taking shots at Sony is easy and cost-effective unfortunately... It's the equivalent of me asking my neighbour if I can borrow my neighbours land to park my toxic waste.. When he obviously refuses, I go around town throwing his name in the mud "why won't he let me use his land, he's got soo much of it... He's no team player" lol

[Tross]

The short answer is, we don't and it's not. Some Xbox and Switch gamers are just put out because they have a lower userbase, and want in on the 80 million + Sony has.

[ziggurcat]

I don't, but I also don't think it would hurt anything if all consoles could play with each other.

[TheDriz]

Easy answer... Its the latest thing for the whiny gaming community to bitch about. Join the mob because its fun guys!!!! The numbers show a different story than the stupid mob drools out.

[TheDriz]

So the mob likes to point fingers at Sony without doing research. But if Sony starts putting money and resources into not game development then all you have is another Xbox. Xbox is awesome when it comes to service and tech and Sony is better at the games. I like it that way and I think gamers forcing their wants on a company that they have no control over is just going to lower the quality of games coming from Sony. Its not their focus get over it.

I say let the companies do what they want and the consumers can speak with their wallet. Guess what you will all pre order and buy all the "crap" games anyways. Complain all you want but its just PR for the "bad guys." And pay attention to the world, no matter how much you cry the bad guys are still wining. Do something for real.

[Nodoze]

Many don't. Guaranteed to be pushed by Microsoft to appear to be an 'issue' when it truly is not. Fortnite will soon be a memory and we will all be better as a result. The game sucks.

[xX-oldboy-Xx]

Who's we? Is this another case of the minority speaking for the majority?

[PiNkFaIrYbOi]

Very few really care about crossplay really. At least outside of game "journalist" that is.

[LrryLegend]

I don't know who "we" is, but I don't have to have it and I'll be alright and continue gaming with or without it...

[LandoCalrissiano]

Instead of 5000 people on mw3 there would be twice that. With more people it will also incentivise studios to support games longer such as keeping lobbies clear of hackers. With the constant flow of money from mt's, hackers chasing people away could be a crap ton of money.

[Christopher]

Hint: Activision doesn't want to incentivise people to keep playing last year's games. They want you to play the latest with the latest content to buy in bits and pieces.

[LandoCalrissiano]

Except the latest thing costs 10s to 100s of millions of dollars whereas mt's are pure profit. You can do the car manufacturer way but I think Rockstar proved that this way is better.

[rainslacker]

So, with Sony having cross play easily available all last gen, how come all those big games from the big publishers that people care about still didn't get cross play with PC?

If pubs really wanted this, they could have been using it, and it could have forced MS hand much faster than waiting for MS to be in a situation where they needed a good PR stunt to gain players trust. I mean, they jumped on that Rocket League outcry pretty quick did they not? Its not like they were the first to mention it, but they certainly were quick to make it into something where they were the hero in all this.

Yet, it took them two years to do something about it, and they don't even have a system wide implementation yet. It's still just up to developers to implement their own solution, and it baffles me why MS would allow this. I understand why Sony doesnt though, because it becomes a hassle moderating all these various implementations which may not always provide security for their own service.

Lets face it. This whole new outcry for cross play was just a manufactured conspiracy that MS has been more than willing to let ride, while they have yet to say what the real problem is preventing it. They insinuate. Sony doesn't say either, but anyone with half a brain will realize that Sony and MS can't come to terms with what is allowed or how it should be implemented.

[Anzil]

I care just not that much

[Mr Marvel]

We don't, so just STFU about it FFS!

[PaleMoonDeath]

We don't, kids and Call of Duty era teens do.

[Sokol]

Personally, I absolutely dont care for the cross play. It brings no benefits to me as a consumer.
But thats just me.

[Babadook7]

I think cross play is great for the two underdog consoles. Good for them. I dont personally feel I need it as my friends always are up for Fortnite on Ps4 however.

[SuperJay182]

Didn't people always used to worry that crossplay between a console and PC, would be unfair, as PC players were deemed superior (and more accurate due to mouse and keyboard)..

Curious as to why thats gone quiet as cross play is the 'in thing' at the moment, along with battle royale.

Give it a few months, and no one will care anymore, we just don't have the attention span.

For me - I'm not really arsed by cross play, but I do get it is important for some, even if I think the defining reasons WHY IT MUST HAPPEN aren't the most convincing for me.

[81BX]

It should matter because as gamers we should always want the features that are gamer friendly. I love the comments like... OH WHY ALL OF A SUDDEN ITS IMPORTANT??? Just like being able to download the most important files 1st so you can start a game faster or download a game 1 time, now you can play on all your consoles/PC. These features are added over time and sure we weren't screaming from the roof top for them, but they are gamer 1st features. Now they are part of the standard. Too many people have the fanboy glasses on for this one, on both sides. We should want this because it can expand the life of some of the games we love

[cliveo32]

People bashing sony well ms didint care about it when sony ask for it between the ps3 and 360 they said no so whats the differents sony dont really need it tbh id like to see but aslong as sony has nothing to do with xbox live ....

[EricHonolulu]

I don't care about it.

[Mr_Writer85]

I don't get the hate aimed at those who want cross play.

I get that some people don't care about it (but you care enough to go into the comments section of a story about it to tell us how little you care)

But I just don't get how anyone could be so against it.

I also don't understand the rage of not having it. Yeah sure it's cool, but if it's not to be then getting angry about it isn't going to help. All this "Sony are monsters and need to burn" just serves the fanboy war and not the cause.

[EricLane]

I want to play Stardew Valley with my daughter and the only way to play it is to buy another PS4, PC or Nintendo Switch. It would be nice to play cross platform.

[Mroc13]

The majority do not care. PS4 has sold so well that if a game is good it will still have players online. If you're worried about finding people to play with you should blame the devs fro not making a game interesting enough to hold players eg Destiny 2 imo. Also blame them for pay walls that split the base.

[conanlifts]

The best advantage I see is with my kids with their friends often gaming on different devices. Yet with cross play they often team up playing Minecraft, some on Xbox, others pc and a few on switch. Cross play enables this and the only friends not joining them in this are those on PS4.
It is not essential but in cases like this it is a good feature. Hopefully all companies offer the same support in the future. For those not caring about cross play offering it makes no difference to them, but for those wanting it, it is a good feature to use.

[gazgriff2k12]

WE DONT!

[DefaultComment]

Because Cross-Play is the future of gamaing and becuase the gaming community wants it. Simple answer to a simple question.

[Flewid638]

We don't.

[Hugodastrevas]

"We" don't, you do (apparently).

[Kakashi Hatake]

From a business standpoint, why would a gaming company doing much better than their competitors allow them a leg up?

[CommonCent]

How many recaps will we have on this non-issue by these fuckbois?

[Kumakai]

the biggest reason is because there shouldn't be walls if everybody is playing the same game, regardless of system. Consoles should differentiate themselves on their libraries and capabilities that appeal to you, to sway you to their brand for sales, not pretend the game you're playing is only on their system. Since 3rd party multiplatform games aren't unique to each console, its silly to arbitrarily limit who you can play with when you don't have to as if they didn't exist elsewhere. also there are 0 technical limitations to it - even Switch can do this.

If i invited a bunch of friends to my flat, i wouldn't divide them all up and tell them to pick a room they want to be in but not let them socialize with anybody that chose different rooms... thats silly. thats also how video games have treated multiplatform online.

for me specifically, i have all 3 current consoles so the reasons are around these lines: sometimes I have friends on ps4 and xbox one. i like to play the best version of whatever game im playing which usually ends up being on the One X because of its power, but I still want to play my PS4 friends. Sometimes I'll buy a game on PS4 because of a sale, or exclusive dlc or whatever the case (that goes both ways) So i either have to buy two copies of the same game for each system or only play with my friends on the 1 platform and forget the others (actually this scenario happens a lot). Or if I go on vacation and take the Switch with me, i can still play my nieces and nephews at games like fortnite or whatever they like to play with me.

[quiddd]

How long has cross play been a thing?