For months, the gaming community has ridiculed Sony for its lack of cross-platform play. Compared to its counterparts, Sony’s PlayStation 4 has limited options that have their community feeling frustrated. While Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC users can play a few games with one another, PS4 members have less than a handful. With Cross-Play being a current hot topic, Sony has finally cracked to the pressure and announced an extended Fortnite Cross-play beta.
For the last 15 years, PlayStation and Xbox have battled it on the net to see which brand provided the superior online service. For years, Xbox Live has offered players a more hospitable user interface but as time went on, the two have become almost identical. Based off of John Kodera, President and Global CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment’s announcement earlier today, it appears that Sony is giving is demand and dipping its foot in the cross-play water. Starting today, Sony will be participating in a limited beta for Fortnite. Below is the official press release from Sony.
Following a comprehensive evaluation process, SIE has identified a path toward supporting cross-platform features for select third-party content. We recognize that PS4 players have been eagerly awaiting an update, and we appreciate the community’s continued patience as we have navigated through this issue to find a solution.
The first step will be an open beta beginning today for Fortnite that will allow for cross-platform gameplay, progression and commerce across PlayStation 4, Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Mac operating systems. We see the beta as an opportunity to conduct thorough testing that ensures cross-platform play is best on PlayStation, while being mindful about the user experience from both a technical and social perspective.
For 24 years, we have strived to deliver the best gaming experience to our fans by providing a uniquely PlayStation perspective. Today, the communities around some games have evolved to the point where cross-platform experiences add significant value to players. In recognition of this, we have completed a thorough analysis of the business mechanics required to ensure that the PlayStation experience for our users remains intact today, and in the future, as we look to open up the platform.
This represents a major policy change for SIE, and we are now in the planning process across the organization to support this change. We will update the community once we have more details to share, including more specifics regarding the beta timeframe, and what this means for other titles going forward.
With Sony caving into some of the gaming communities demands, how long will it take for Black Ops 4, Battlefield V, Borderlands, Overwatch, Fallout 76, Elder Scrolls Online, Monster Hunter World, and Red Dead Redemption 2 to become cross-platform compatible? Hopefully, this Fortnite beta will prove successful and gamers will no longer have to buy an additional console to be able to play with their friends. Could the steady drop of gamers using the PlayStation network be the cause of this change or could Sony see some monetary benefit from this arrangement? Ultimately, we will just have to wait and see the results of the extended Fortnite Cross-Play Beta.
