The sheer number of games that support crossplay across PlayStation 5, PS4, and various other platforms has been rapidly increasing – despite Sony being one of the last to break down its walls to other consoles. To be fair, the Japanese giant was an early advocate of crossplay with PC in the PS3 and even PS2 days, but now it enables PlayStation owners to compete against Xbox and Nintendo Switch fans as well – heck, even its very own multiformat baseball sim MLB The Show 21 supports the feature.
And it’s something that boss Jim Ryan expects to see a lot more of in the future. “We support and encourage crossplay,” he told newsletter Axios. “[The number of games that utilise it] will continue to grow.”
The manufacturer did come underfire earlier in the year when court documents revealed that the firm enforces a policy whereby publishers are taxed if there’s a disproportionate ratio between PlayStation playtime and cross-platform purchases made through competing storefronts. This is, however, only imposed when said scenario occurs – otherwise, the company does not charge third-parties to implement the feature, as has been incorrectly interpreted on social media.
Recently, Gearbox bigwig Randy Pitchford alluded to a crossplay patch for Borderlands 3 that excluded PlayStation platforms at the request of the publisher. Asked specifically about this, Ryan replied that he didn’t want to talk about a “live business issue with a long-standing partner” but stressed that its “policies are consistent across all of the publishers”.
Considering that the list of All Crossplay Games on PS5 and PS4 keeps increasing, it’s unclear as to the nature of the problem here. Either way, it’s good to see Sony finally onboard with this very welcome feature.
[source axios.com]
Comments 71
The Way I See It Is Sony Had No Problem's Doing Crossplay With The PC It Was Consoles They Had The Issue With.
I preferred the "playstation is the best place to play" line. Only the hippies wanted this!
So long they pay the tax and open themselves for Sony to audit all their finances…
Let’s not forget the contract isn’t just about paying in edge cases but also to open the company books for third party auditing if Sony decides they think you are not honest.
lol really now you give in . people had to keep at you. play the game on our servers not theirs basically thats crap. this is the future people want to play against their friends dont matter what device you have. i understand this and im an offline gamer. been gaming since commodore 64 days we had no internet. enjoy 🙂
Technically Sony's done cross play and stuff of that nature with PC before. It was always with rival consoles they drew the line but I personally think it shouldn't even be that way anymore with how mostly platform agnostic this gaming generation looks to be in the future
Well, now they do. Been a long, long road to get here where we’re seeing more games implement crossplay and actually be allowed on Playstation.
@Areus Which doesn't make much sense cause a couple of games like Hunt Showdown has cross play with Xbox
Maybe they supposedly encourage it now but they didn't want it before. It's only here because people were at them constantly and they caved in the end.
🤦🏼♂️ They’re going to have more flip flops than politicians soon.
I mean you weren't saying that years ago, but at least now I can play with Xbox and Nintendo players.
But it was unnecessary for Sony to prevent it years ago. I'm just glad that they aren't getting a big head just because of the PS4 getting 100M+ sales, because unlike with the PS1 and PS2 days, they have legitimate competition now in the forms of Xbox Game Pass and Nintendo Switch.
@TheFrenchiestFry yeah they did FF14 cross play with PC back in 2013. Its good that we have this feature keeping game servers populated for longer.
I'd say that Microsoft would do they same thing if they were top dog last gen but that wouldn't explain why Nintendo was on board with it before Sony. They're usually the ones that are the most isolated and locked away when it comes to stuff like this but they seemed to openly embrace it.
@ATaco I'm not 100% on this but I think FF14 would have been crossplay across PS, Xbox and PC but MS wanted their own servers for Xbox players and Square said no.
Yeah MS have adopted crossplay a lot quicker than PS which is surprising considering they were so locked down back then.
@Alpha_Pulse SFV's another big example. Sony actually worked really closely with Capcom to ensure there was parity between PS4 and PC when it came to SFV's online experience and being able to play against people on the other platform
Sony is going after Microsoft, like Microsoft did Sony. This will eventually get tied into the lack of availability of formerly cross-platform games. Sony painting Microsoft as the anti-gamer.
@Cyxn1d3 with you on this to a certain degree..i dislike crossplay especially in warzone where the pc gamers cheat and no amount of people saying they dont wont sway me..they cheat like mafia accountants..but i can understand why crossplay can be a welcome addition to a lot of console gamers especially if your friends are playing the same game but on other formats..so its a catch 22 situation for me as i see it but we have to consider other gamers so putting crossplay to bed isnt really an option..
@Cyxn1d3
I like cross play with Xbox players. A few friends of mine are Xbox only and it’s nice being able to play Cold War with them.
I could certainly live without PC players, though. AimBot has gotten on my last nerve.
They should include an option to disable cross play with PC gamers. Only console gamers.
I’ve only ever wanted to use cross play once, and that was for Borderlands 3. Hahaha.
personally i hate cross play with PC and always turn it off if possible.
The only time I like crossplay is when a game struggles to find enough players. All my friends play on the same platform as me so I've no need for it unless it struggles to find enough players. Really hate what Warzone has been doing, keeps bugging me to enable it.
It's a great thing to have but it shouldn't be trying to force me to turn it on. Don't want to play against PC players so if there was a way to turn them off, then I'd consider turning it on to play against Xbox players.
@TheRedComet
Yep, the "PC master race" of cheaters. The sheer amount of them in Warzone is just embarrassing.
One issue that never concerned me one bit. Unfortunately this is the future of gaming, online live service MP games where all you do is the same things every day in the same games with the same end results.
SP games will still exist but only as a niche market and more out of a sense of gaming tradition than anything else.
Well done, people.
😒
As long as it doesn’t lead to Sony losing money and so not supporting as many single player games I couldn’t care less. What Sony does with all those repetitive, dull, online “games” that are actually just social hang outs.
I hope in the future the only difference between consoles is just the controller and brand name . I used to somewhat care about console exclusives & stuff like that , and to this day , I don't even know why . I rather all games be on all consoles and friends can add each-other and do the same across all networks , but dare to to dream .
one of the most annoying things in life is talking about a game, mingling with people , and then that one or few people say '' but i have it on xbox , i dont have a playstation , or vise versa'' , its like a vibe kill . or having to go out and buy a console just for one game (that you really want) .
really couldn't care less about the brand ,exclusives , etc . just the games , and how fun & interactive they make their network, since im big about online.
@thefourfoldroot ''What Sony does with all those repetitive, dull, online “games” that are actually just social hang outs.''
like what ?
@Col_McCafferty do you dislike multiplayer ?
Typical of Sony in the recent times. It takes an entire community of backlash and complaints to change their mind on a ridiculous decision.
First the closure of the old stores which just sit there and make money for nothing.
Then crossplay, which they may have dabbled in on PC but not much and not consoles.
Hopefully the next one is a backward compatibility update for PS5 and keeping our exclusives on our platform.
Cross-play with PC also means introducing PC's cheater problem on to the console platform. There's a bliss over "open gardens" now, but when people start having aimbots ruin their new $69 mp game, I think open gardens will turn into sour grapes.
@nomither6 Well, when Xbox force Sony out of the hardware business and become a software developer only, you'll finally get your wish!
😒
I don't mind MP but it's the starter or dessert, never the main course as far as I'm concerned.
@nomither6
Sorry, somehow hit the full stop button half way through. Should have been
“ I couldn’t care less what Sony does with all those repetitive, dull, online “games” that are actually just social hang outs”. And by those, I mean any online multiplayer game in existence pretty much.
People really seem convinced that aim bots are rampant on PC, I'd guess most haven't spent any great amount of time playing shooters with a keyboard and mouse, but the difference in control and precision is night and day. I've been playing almost exclusively on the DualSense since November and I don't hold much hope of my aim getting as good as it was on the Steam Controller (which has a touchpad rather than a right stick), let alone as good as it still is with a decent mouse, despite hardly ever using it. I wouldn't want to play competitive FPS against PC players for this reason, but cheating on modern games is a vastly overestimated problem.
Those issues aside, I have to admit playing with the DualSense is a much more relaxing experience, and the haptics are nice where implemented well. Competitive FPS and unoptimised menus are probably the only time I'll be using anything else for a long time.
@Col_McCafferty I think single player games will be fine.
I used to worry that they would begin to fade too until PS4 and Switch. Exclusive solo games are massively popular on both.
And Sony won't be forced out of consoles.
Don't worry about that. The only way Sony and Nintendo will stop making them is if there's no demand.
PC player have inherent advantages
keyboard and mouse
very high frame rates
and Cheaters
I dont want to play with PC players its just unfair
@Cyxn1d3 @ATaco @Northern_munkey
Does the game not have the option to turn off crossplay?
The most simple solution that isn't 'punish everybody' would be options that allow the users to choose which platforms or input methods are allowed to be added to your matchmaking.
Crossplay doesn’t interest me until I can differentiate between PC and consoles. I do t want to play with PC players due to cheating.
Cross-play can obviously have benefits but you should always be able to choose who you allow cross-play with if a game is going to implement it. Shooters especially need this for obvious reasons.
So have they stopped charging developers now then or are they still the only company to do this?
They need to make positive moves like how Xbox was eventually hounded out about charging people to play F2P games.
@Richnj warzone has that option but then you limit yourself to how many matches you will find and increase the searching time..i dont like crossplay with pc gamers but i have to accept its inevitable in some games..maybe activision could actually use some of that money to create an anti cheat system that works or at the least work better..
Oh look...Sony becomes 'under fire' because there's an out cry by those that aren't restrained by blind loyalty and now the Sony faithful get to benefit too...? Wow, who could see that happening?
Maybe more should question the price hike of cross gen games...rather than blindly defend them?...especially when they still need patching. Who knows, maybe we'd all benefit.
Or maybe we should be more vocal about Sony's refund policies? Maybe we'd all benefit.
Or maybe more vocal about asking why when games also go to pc we're still having content locked behind paywalls when pc gamers get access to everything...yet we're charged usually more for the game?...who knows, maybe we'd start to see that change too
Or maybe we should make excuses for them...and watch how we benefit from that.
@Northern_munkey you keep saying you hate crossplay and implied you'd like to put crossplay "to bed"
Am I right in assuming that you don't want any crossplay at all, even if cheating was reduced? Because if that's the case, then yeah, you would be reducing population sizes and increasing search times. Those are part of the argument for crossplay.
I'm just asking because I'm confused by the focus on crossplay and mot the cheating.
I'm disappointed that there hasn't been an outcry over the paywall requirement for cross-play with PC players. I don't understand how console gamers can happily continue paying for PS+/Xbox Live/Nintendo Online to cross-play with PC players who don't have to pay anything and get access to the entire pool of console players. Not only that but PC players have every advantage: input device of their choice, maximum frame rates, increased FOV, ultrawide resolutions; it's completely unbalanced in their favour.
I know most of the popular cross-play games are free-to-play anyway, which is fine but what irks me is when retail games that have cross-play with PC still require an online paywall on console like Street Fighter V. These online subscriptions supposedly cover server and maintenance costs but then why do PC players not have to contribute at all? How is it fair that console players have to pay for the entire cost of cross-playing with PC players? Either the paywall for PC cross-play needs to be dropped or charge PC players for cross-play access to console players. We all know the latter will never happen though.
@Richnj you are wrong..i never said i hated it..i said i "disliked" it..big difference there also i didnt say it needs to be put to bed either..it needs regulating more than what it currently is and i'm not convinced it can be and dont ask me how it could be done as i'm not a programer also i said that i have to accept its not going away so as a gamer i have to accept it will be a multiplayer stalwart from here on in..its going to be a divisive topic especially when people dont read what somebodys written properly..
Cross play between PC and consoles will eventually kill off the PS+/xbox live subscription requirements. More and more people are noticing that the online multiplayer tax is not justified when your friends on PC get the same experience for free
@Northern_munkey "i didnt say it needs to be put to bed either."
"but we have to consider other gamers so putting crossplay to bed isnt really an option.."
These were your words. I'm not misreading, I read what you typed and I asked for clarification on what you meant and what you really feel. I wasn't attacking you.
Cheating is, and has always been, an issue. I can't talk for Warzone since I don't play drivel, but I do remember plenty of cheating throughout the OG xbox and 360 days, and in contrast, the last gen has been pretty good at staying ahead of cheaters. Activision are just a bad publisher, so how much they will do about it, I'm not certain, but I'm sure that as crossplay becomes standard, the systems for reducing cheating will be become better.
And again, I still think that putting the options in the player's hands would be a good way to let players decide if they want to take the risk or not.
Mostly because part of the problem with cheaters is their ability to constantly find new ways to break the systems. It can take time to plug one hole, only for a new one to open up quicker than you plugged the last one.
I'm not saying to not find and fix the cheating, only that a robust crossplay option set could help reduce the frustration for players who don't want to wait for cheating to be crackdown on.
@Netbean
I think it will happen eventually, but that means that income needs replacing with something else.
I think Xbox could drop it first once Game Pass hits a set amount of subscribers, but not sure what Sony could do to substitute that lost income.
You can then also go into the debate of why next gen games cost £70/$70 when the same game is £50/$60 on PC.
@Richnj no problemo..i thought it was pretty clear what i thought but obviously it wasnt...
@Col_McCafferty
Agreed. If Multiplayer wasn't so predominant now we'd have story expansions for GTA 5 and Red Dead 2. Or probably more news of GTA 6. Thanks to the cash cow that is multiplayer though, Rockstar finds it easier to milk their community with new, excessively grindy unless you just pay up, "content".
@ATaco Yeah, Rockstar are a shadow of what they once were and bringing out yet another updated version of GTA V for the new console generation seems almost like trolling at this point. Speaking of which...
Ah, so now the whining has moved onto paying to play online. Bloody hell, it's almost as if people expect gaming to be free!
Cheap subscription, free online gaming, games not retailing for more than £50, anything else?
All this will lead to is online service only games stuffed full of MTX and Season passes and cheap disposable thrills.
Sure, nobody likes to be ripped off but on the other hand "you get what you pay for" and "be careful what you wish for".
Of course with Plus we're not just paying for online gaming but also receive additional games each month as well. If you're not bothered about either then don't pay for Plus.
🙄
(Obviously this sentiment is aimed at everyone not just the poster I was replying to)
@Netbean You'd hope so. But not once have I ever read a publication that praises cross-play, or channels with with any sort of ability that could have a voice noticed, also question the multiplayer paywall on console.
And the question shouldn't be limited to just cross-play but also cross-platform. We're getting 'inclusivity' as marketing buzzwords from the likes of Phil Spencer as why Xbox games on pc benefit us all...and speaches concerning how for 20years the Xbox community is valued, and they wouldn't be here if it wasn't for us, during this year's E3...yet they still think nothing of having multiplayer locked behind a paywall for Xbox customers.
@Col_McCafferty dude your outlook is so odd. You keep fighting against things that YOU would ultimately benefit from. That's a new kind of stupid right there. Why?
You fear it will lead to what? Microtransactions? Loot boxes? Season passes?...are you new to gaming? You're already having these things fill your game only you're still paying for online access...as well as more expensive games. Cheaters? People still cheat.
Ok you get what you pay for...so why are you buying and game and not getting a large chunk of it because it's locked behind a paywall? You're cool with that though cause plus gives out games and sales...right? So why not ask for the option to have plus just consist of that and not online play? And then you'll actually get what you pay for with everything you pay for.
You guys need to take a step back. Realise that you're complaining about people that want to ensure you get more options...options that could benefit you. Instead of feeling threatened because somebody questions a company that honestly truly really doesn't give a ***** about YOU personally...regardless of how many posts you place defending everything about them (good and bad). Wake up fool.
@Bleachedsmiles Because I've learnt that companies aren't charities and if they give with one hand they'll take with the other.
We're not just paying to play online, we're also getting monthly games on top of that. Over the past year or so I've more than got my monies worth from Plus.
It's just the constant whining and bitching every single bloody day, it's getting on my nerves. If gaming makes some of you so ***** miserable maybe you need to take up a new hobby!
@Col_McCafferty Again. Having monthly games doesn't make the fact that you're locked out of content you've already paid for unless you pay that monthly fee less of a reality. You either want what you've paid for or don't...paying £70 for bf5 and having an expectation to play bf5 without having a another charge there isn't asking for charity. A reasonable mind would say it's a reasonable expectation when you're not being offered anything extra within bf5 when the guy who's playing it on pc isn't paying a month charge to play it.
Step back to PS3 era and you're right there laughing at the Xbox gamers paying for online...right?
Plus offers value. That's fine. Have it as an option and I'd still subscribe because I know the value it's offered myself. Still doesn't mean multiplayer should be behind a paywall.
And you're literally complaining about constant bitching and moaning getting on your nerves under a story that shows you how bitching and moaning has benefitted you as Sony is now welcoming cross-play. Meaning you're games are going to live longer through bigger player base and Dev support!!? Man...you're lost.
@Bleachedsmiles It offers no benefit to me whatsoever. I very rarely play online and when I do I am matched up with strangers.
The question of whether we should pay extra for online gaming is an interesting one but I'm sure Sony would justify it by saying it pays for their own servers, which offers security and protection. Or maybe it's just a scam and that's why they throw 'free' games our way
But the list of things gamers, in particular those that play on PS, moan about is growing day by day.
1) £70 games
2) No Game Pass equivalent
3) Online gaming costs extra
4) PS5s difficult if not nay impossible to purchase at RRP*
5) PS5 games also released on PS4
6) No handheld replacement for the Vita
7) Lack of 'legacy' titles available on PS5
Anything else?
*this I agree with but is that Sony's fault or just due to extenuating circumstances outside of their control, after all the Series X is also very hard to get hold of.
Edit - Oh yes, non-refund policy for digital.purchases. This is a tough one, if you buy a game and don't like it is that Sony's fault? Would you ask for a refund if you don't like a film you see at the cinema? If you buy a physical copy and ask for a refund it better be because it's faulty, if you just don't like it I'm not sure GAME would give you your money back. Maybe at best they'd offer you something back should you trade it in but that's probably it.
Generally I've never bought a game that I dislike, maybe because I'm easy to please or not that cynical or perhaps I have a better idea of what I would like. But anyway this is an issue that some have a problem with so I guess we'll add this to the list.
@Col_McCafferty Let them moan. You're seeing the results of it. We saw the results of it a few months back when Xbox tried to raise the price of gold. Who cares if you personally don't benefit from online play? Or we personally don't benefit from gold not rising in price? If you're sick of reading comments from people moaning stay off forums. Or at the very least don't go on to posts about gamers concerns (or the results of those concerns).
Or at least realise that you putting energy into moaning about people moaning is not only a waste of time but simply isn't productive and never will be.
Also, I think it's a shame that not more people are pulling Sony up on their refund policy. That should really be top of your moaners list.
@Bleachedsmiles My biggest complaint is that I can't get hold of a PS5.
Right now nothing else bothers me!
LIES! You were forced into this because other platform holders were all on board and it made you look like grumpy old fools for refusing to join in.
@Mad001 LOAD "*",8,1 👍
@Col_McCafferty
I honestly feel bad that I have a PS5 since I haven't bought a single exclusive for it yet. Almost feels like I'm wasting this privilege lol
PS4 games play great though!
@ATaco Ha, don't be mate. At least you're using it and enjoying playing games on your shiny new console, unlike some other people.
@Col_McCafferty Sony's refund policy isn't about simply having buyers remorse cause you didnt like the game. Generally movies work regardless of if you end up liking them or not. If a game is full of bugs, or is sold to you on fake gameplay/screenshots, isn't as advertised. You lose your right for refund by simply starting the game...
@__jamiie Does it matter though? They've changed their stance.
Back in the PS3/360 days it was MS who didn't want cross play but they altered their plans last gen and received a lot of praise from gamers. Maybe it's time to climb down from your high horse, eh mate?
@Bleachedsmiles Films can include scenes in trailers that don't make the final cut.
A lot of games have bugs at launch but invariably are fixed. It's not ideal I grant you but no reason to throw one's dummy out of one's pram.
Sorry but I was right, you are an example of an incredibly self-entitled gamer so I won't bother wasting any more of my time responding to you.
@Col_McCafferty My high horse?? I'm just stating facts mate. Just because Sony changed their minds doesn't mean they shouldn't be held accountable for their anti-consumer attitude which they had until not that long ago.
@__jamiie Sorry but I really don't understand that attitude.
Companies, like people, can change their minds. MS changed theirs and the so-called gaming community seem to have forgiven them, not sue why the double standards.
Because Sony was stopping cross play until very recently and now act like it's always been really important to them.
Cross play is really useful for new gen with last gen and for platform with small install base like VR.
One thing I'd like to mention is the first few games that wanted crossplay, like Minecraft, wanted integration with...guess who? Microsoft. I guess Sony didn't feel too comfortable handing the keys over to it's direct competition. In this sense Nintendo didn't really care because hey...at least they don't have to pay for servers. They love their P2P connections.
@Col_McCafferty I'm self entitled because I want us to be treated equally? Like I said before...you're lost. You come across as a classic Sony apologist. Yet perfectly fine having 'principles' in another post when you moaned about publishers putting games day 1 on gamepass but charging £70 on PlayStation.
You're clearly a beta personality that will always be too sensitive to any criticism that comes Sony's way. It's cool.
If they were truly in support of it, they wouldn't have those draconian tactics in place for crossplay...
@theheadofabroom
I grew up with mouse and keyboard. I know how much more precise you can be with a MK combo.
But watch some of the kill cam videos. They are snap aiming with aim bot in a lot of cases. It’s easy to tell the difference between precise mouse aiming and aim bot.
@TheRedComet hmm, maybe, I know I've seen a couple of friends back in my uni days actually be that good, aim that precisely, that it looked unnatural. I was never that good, but it makes me wonder when I see people discounting killcam footage as obvious cheating 🤷
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