PS4 Cross Play Will Never Happen Because of Numbers

One of the biggest dreams for gamers, generation after generation, has been the idea of cross- platform play. Each and every gamer can think back to at least one conversation in the schoolyard centered around how awesome it would be if consoles could connect and play together, regardless of brand. That is, of course, after the endless talks about that one kid’s uncle who worked at Nintendo.

[FallenAngel1984]

PS4 cross platform play is already happening. For example Dragon Quest X will have crossplay across Wii U, PC, PS4 & NS.

[Araragifeels]

Probably is that PlayStation doesn't want to do cross play with Xbox only but doesn't care about doing cross play with PC and Nintendo.

[Segata]

No. Rocket League. Sony refused when approached by them for crossplay of any kind.

[freshslicepizza]

Sony already refused years ago with Pure Chess, Nintendo said they are fine with it, Sony ignored the request.

https://www.polygon.com/201...

Same pattern but you guys keep wanting to sing a different tune all while trying to deflect. The example of Dragon Quest I will believe it when I see it because nothing I have read says you can play PS4 players against WiiU players right now.

And if this article wants to talk about numbers then Sony is in for a rude wakening, they don't hold a candle to portable and computer versions of Minecraft. You really think Microsoft is desperate for Sony's numbers to help the Minecraft community now that they have Xbox, PC and Switch together? Lol, way too funny.

[AspiringProGenji]

"Pure Chess"
Hahahaha

Such small game probably wasn't worth an answer or their attention, but I actually liked that game on Vita

[freshslicepizza]

@AspiringProGenji
"Such small game probably wasn't worth an answer or their attention, but I actually liked that game on Vita"

Is Rocket League small potatoes too? How about Minecraft? What's it going to take for guys to admit Sony is acting quite the opposite of 4theplayers motto. First it was EA Access, now it's crossplay with other consoles. What's next, they are going to tell you who your internet provider has to be?

[OtakuDJK1NG-Rory]

if that the case then why doesn't Puyo Puyo Tetris has cross-play or any other multiplats shared between the Switch and PS4.

One game =/= Sony okay with Crossplay with Nintendo

and I see nothing about DQX cross-play on Switch and PS4 on google.
Square Enix never said anything about it either.

[Big_Game_Hunters]

@aspiring genji
small games isone of the big reasons why we need crossplay, Larger community for low playerbase games. I doubt Sony has to do anything but sign either way so saying "its not worth their attention" is like spitting at the face of gamers.

[Aenea]

@Segata

That's BS, Rocket League has had crossplay from release between PC and PS4...

[modelgod]

Maybe they won't do cross-play because they know we'll AHNILIATE you!! I can't imagine losing to someone who owns a PS. We don't have SF5 and I still will work you, all I need is 8 days of practice!

[Cryptcuzz]

@modelgod

Street Fighter 5?

It has cross-play with PC.
Why don't you try it on there instead.

Guaranteed you'll get your ass handed to you by plenty of PS players.

[freshslicepizza]

@Aenea
"That's BS, Rocket League has had crossplay from release between PC and PS4..."

Nice job completely ignoring the context of this article. It is about crossplay with other consoles.

PC - PS4

or

PC - Xbox - Switch

So he is correct, Sony REFUSED to allow it with any other console.

[Ceaser9857361]

Sony originally proposed the idea to unite the community in PS3 era but MS declined because of 360 sales. Now they are badly fucked since E3 2013 and now want to do it. now look at Xbox fanboys blaming it on Sony Playstation... Such! Salty people

This was for Defiance. Apparently Microsoft had denied cross platform before it was cool..

http://imgur.com/a/qo4QF

[KillBill]

@arijitfrens2006 - actually MS previously said no to crossplatform due to network control agreements at the time. They have since relaxed their network policy and opened up Devs to allow them to host their own servers instead of requiring MS servers. I believe it was EA that pushed the opening of servers with XBox, though I could be recalling that wrong?

[Aenea]

@moldy

He said "crossplay of any kind", which is what I replied to, not the article. So yes, his comment is BS. Nice try tho! Now go play a game on your PC...

[wonderfulmonkeyman]

Rocket League.

Anyways, I'm hoping that, eventually, cross play becomes a thing that platform developers do regardless of title.
Blurring the lines just enough to play with any buddies you've got, regardless of their chosen hardware, would probably lead to a little more understanding between the different fanbases.
Of course, it will also ignite flame wars everywhere, but what doesn't these days?
I'll take playing with friends regardless of console anyday, despite the downside of having to deal with more jerks.

[modelgod]

If Sony decides to get on board will we be able to speak to them; talk trash? Can you even talk to someone in chat on the PS4? is that a real thing now? Last time I checked I couldn't get a party together.

[SurgicalMenace]

Gamers have a tendency to be so selfish. Why would catering to a community that only understands things their way be of any benefit for the business? If for any reason Sony agreed to have cross play, most of you would only complain because its not implemented in a way that suits you. Next, like all things that don't go your way, you'll just stop supporting it. Taking every opportunity afterwards to bash Sony on how they messed cross play up. Sony is going to save themselves and you time, by not even inviting the hassle. All of you crying about cross play would not even be willing to invest a dime into it if asked, so please stop.

[wonderfulmonkeyman]

@Menace
" If for any reason Sony agreed to have cross play, most of you would only complain because its not implemented in a way that suits you."

I'll thank you to not speak for everyone that wants to have cross play implemented exactly the way it is now.

I'll also thank you to stop treating every criticism of Sony's decision on not doing cross play as if it's mindless bashing, when there are plenty of examples of it not affecting Sony's business in any negative fashion.

I don't see you investing a single dime into it, either, so cut the BS and just accept that it's a stupid move to not do it when the opportunity is there.

Also, quit acting like anyone complaining about this isn't a Sony fan.

[ILostMyMind]

In the next generation, it will be.

[Gardenia]

There is no reason for cross play if your on the top of console sales. Some games have cross play with PC but that's a different story. With cross play right now Microsoft has everything to win and Sony everything to lose

[Cryptcuzz]

That's how it is. I don't get why it is so hard for others to grasp and making a big deal over what has been the norm. It's business.

Once you're the market leader, why share your player base with the competition when it is a selling point in having the most players for any given game.

The market leader, in this case Sony, will also see it as a factor in potentially moving more units or not.

Say for example, one finds out a family or friend is interested in an upcoming game that is mutually liked. If most friends/family is going to play said game on a PS4, in this case, statistically it would be, over an Xbox One (with PS4 having two times the installed base right now) that would be an instance where a new PS4 sold is going to happen or not.

If cross-play was allowed across the board for all games, in that one instance above, if the friends/family already had an xbox one, they can factor in whether to save money and simply buy the game to play with everyone else, or simply buy a PS4. That is one instance where a new PS4 would be sold or not. The market leader will always put themselves in that position and it simply makes sense to do so. Why help the competition in sharing the same players and risk losing in potential new sales?

[jojo319]

I'm sure MS is happy just raking in the Minecraft $$ from allowing all platforms. I can't think of a game that Sony has put on Xbox. Not to mention it's cross platform on basically eveything (my toaster probably supports it) but PS4. And Sony is the one making the decision.

[freshslicepizza]

It's laughable that Microsoft needs Playstation members and that's why it will never happen. The PC alone dwarfs the PS4 userbase and guess who owns that community? Sony is trying to differenciate themselves while Nintendo gave then a funny look and saying they have no problem with it.

[bluefox755]

"The PC alone dwarfs the PS4 userbase and guess who owns that community?"
Valve?

[Imalwaysright]

No one owns the PC community. The hell are you talking about? MS owns the Xbox and that's why they force feed you their anti-consumer practices such as paying for online play.

@ bluefox

Remember when Valve tried to monetize mods? Long story short, the PC community (which BTW is the best community) gave them the middle finger and to this day I have yet to pay for a mod.

[freshslicepizza]

@bluefox755
"Valve?"

Microsoft owns Minecraft. Can you even buy the regular Minecraft game on Steam? But thanks for all the disagrees, shows me once again you guys don't like hearing the truth. The PC platform is crossplay with Xbox and Switch, guess whose not part of that?

[Realms]

LOL. You think MS is the prefer way for PC gamers to play games? LOL. Valve and steam are way ahead of MS and Sony has established their dominance on consoles MS is on an uphill battle on both fronts.

[TheGamingArt]

"The PC alone dwarfs the PS4 userbase and guess who owns that community?"-- how many pc gamers do you think there are out there XD

[freshslicepizza]

@Realms
"LOL. You think MS is the prefer way for PC gamers to play games? LOL."

For Minecraft the community is a heck of a lot larger than the PS4.

[InKnight7s]

Yet no one talking about how mircrosoft refusing XIV since last gen.

[DialgaMarine]

That's because it doesn't support their hipster anti-Playstation rhetoric. The gaming hipster rule book states that you're not a real gamer unless you have an irrational hatred for the top dog, and you must blindly love everything that you think makes them look bad.

Still don't see what the deal is; PlayStation has been doing cross platform play with PC, on many games, since 2002. Why all the sudden are they required to be buddy buddy with the console competition company that has tried to sabatoge them on multiple occasions?

[AspiringProGenji]

They suddenly wanna play with us. Buy a Ps4 then! We don't need you screaming over Voice chat that you are better than us because of a controller layout

[UltraNova]

Best comment regarding Cross play between Sony and MS.

PlayStation does not need Cross play with xbox, PC will do just fine as it always has.

[DialgaMarine]

It's because cross platform play has more benefit, on the sales front, for the lesser audience. Sony doing cross play will deter potential PS4 adopters, who only have interest in playing games like Minecraft. MS had the same mentality with the 360.

Plus, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't MS requiring Switch users to create XBL accounts to be able to play with Xbox players?

[UltraNova]

Yes, and they might have even asked Sony the same and got the middle-finger as a response for all we know.

[DialgaMarine]

I sure hope so. After what MS did to Sega, to get themselves a spot in the console business, it only makes sense for Sony to be extremely skeptical. They are not a good company to trust.

[TheGoodestBoi]

"One of the biggest dreams for gamers, generation after generation, has been the idea of cross- platform play"
Is that really the case or is this just hyperbole?

[OtakuDJK1NG-Rory]

it is for the developers otherwise they wouldn't be trying to get Sony to accept it.
But of course console fanboys like to stay in one zone and that zone only.

A multiplatform game that has online need to have cross-play otherwise there no point of having it on multiple system creating multiple servers.

[ThanatosDMC]

Crossplay has been a thing with Playstation and PC since PS2.

[OtakuDJK1NG-Rory]

@ThanatosDMC
Uh PC isn't owned by anyone. So using that as an excuse,

[TheGoodestBoi]

a fair point, unified servers for all platforms, so that the Developers can spend less, but still charge consumers $60 xD

[rainslacker]

I'd say that since the connected console only really took full swing last gen, it's hyperbole.

Before then, it was more like "Why can't I play Sonic on my SNES...that'd be the cool"

[Petebloodyonion]

Decent read explaining in a nutshell why Sony won't allow cross play on PS4
The article should also add that Sony's move also weaken 3rd party and their own games.
PPL seems to forget that Sony makes money from 1st party games and having a weaker 3rd party competition can sway sells from Namco or Activision's game toward a 1st party game.

Also, an important note that ppl seems to forget It is not Nintendo and MS asking for cross play, its publisher or 3rd party games companies like Namco, Wildcats, Psyonix etc.

[rainslacker]

Really? The author knows why Sony won't allow it? It knows all the details behind their decision?

[Petebloodyonion]

You don't need to be a marketing genius to figure it out!
Money and power simple as that.
3rd party dev already mentioned that they could make it but Sony does not allow it so what other reason do you see?

[rainslacker]

No I suppose not, because it's only assumption that it's a marketing issue.

But Sony has gone on record to say they can't moderate another service in that whole family friendly statement, which is the same reason MS gave last gen. The devs who decide to talk about it say they don't know the reasons behind it, and likely there is a lot more to it than they can comprehend, and the Tekken dev said there are security concerns Sony would have to deal with.

So, given these statements, which are often cited as a way to make Sony look bad, can it be extrapolated that it's just a marketing issue.

Money and power may have something to do with it as well, but surely that can't be the only reason. I don't believe there would be a huge problem with losing user base in this issue because enabling cross play doesn't mean the feature is so fully implemented that it would allow for some form of migration due to user influence, and what could go one way for one company is just as true as it is for the other company. In fact, in this, Sony is more likely to benefit because the larger install base could have more influence on Xbox users.

The 3rd party devs said they made their own implementation. But on PC, Sony uses it's own API's to insure the security of their network. Those API's aren't set up for communication with another console, so whatever the devs created wouldn't have met compliance standards, meaning the security of Sony's system and network could be compromised. Security in IT is a very broad term that encompasses a lot more than hacking, but also includes the stability of the network, it's moderation policies, potential compromises to the network, and what to do in many different scenarios.

Does this article go into that kind of analysis, or is it just going the tired, narrowly focused, "It's a money thing, and Sony doesn't want to lose it" routine that most people who won't care to look past their own assumptions at the larger picture? If all they do is the latter, then it's not a decent read, nor does it put everything into a nutshell. You want this to be true, and if you believe this is all it is, then you are pre-disposed to thinking it's informed, but you only close yourself off to thinking about it critically if you don't want to consider anything else.

[kayoss]

Cross play. Sure that's a good idea. It's not enough that we have console war arguments on game forums, but step it up a notch. Let allow opposing gamers screaming at each other through game chat and competitive multiplayer games. How bout PC gamer calling raids on other players? Be nice if we can have that "feature" as well on console.

[Liqu1d]

99% of the people that participate in console war arguments don't even play games so you don't have to worry about them being a nuisance online.

[Ninver]

As long as i have enough people to compete against on my preferred console, i don't give two shits about cross play.

[jlove4life]

My thoughts exactly

[modelgod]

@Aspiringprogenji I can care less about playing against you dudes. If they actually did allow cross play, and they kept track of wins losses in said game, I'm pretty sure; I'm 100% sure it'll show that Xbox players are better in ANY game!

[BlaqMagiq1]

PS4 has cross play with PC that's more than enough.

[omegaheat]

If Sony doesn't want in, why doesn't Microsoft just give more perks to members of the crossplay platform? Just leave the Sony platform out of the best features. It's their ip, they can do whatever the hell they want with it.

[lennyvon]

It's true Sony have everything to loose with crossplay, on competitive game like battlefield and cod for example the players using Xbox one pads would have an obvious advantage Sony knows this. They had a asymmetric analogs game pad in development for Ps4 at one stage https://www.extremetech.com...

[inxine]

i guess since Microsoft or xbox branch denied it years ago, sonys doing the same now. also, if the rival company is constantly 'badmouthing' the other, y should they accept it? no one cares about crossplay, its a topic for fans to fight over, it wasnt even an issue up until half a year ago.