Sony’s PS4 cross-play stance softens, giving Fortnite fans hope
Under increasing pressure from the gaming community at large, Sony appears to be softening its stance on cross-play with other systems.
PS4 owners demanding the ability to play Fortnite with their friends on the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch have seen their pleas fall on deaf ears until now.
Now Sony says it is listening to the calls and looking to come up with a solution that’ll make everyone happy.
In an interview with Eurogamer (via Gamasutra), the company says it is carefully considering its options because any Fortnite policy is likely to affect other games moving forward. For instance, games like Minecraft and Rocket League also offer cross-play.
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“We’re hearing [our players]. We’re looking at a lot of the possibilities. You can imagine that the circumstances around that affect a lot more than just one game,” Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO and president Shawn Layden.
“I’m confident we’ll get to a solution which will be understood and accepted by our gaming community, while at the same time supporting our business.”
What this solution will entail remains to be seen.
Softened stance
Sony currently offers Fotnite cross-play between PS4, PC, Mac and iOS devices, but has been reluctant to allow Microsoft and Nintendo consoles to join the party. It is believed Sony doesn’t want to compromise its dominant market position, by allowing Xbox gamers to play alongside their PS4-owning counterparts.
In a statement earlier in June, Sony showed no signs of relenting. The firm wrote: ”We’re always open to hearing what the PlayStation community is interested in to enhance their gaming experience. Fortnite is already a huge hit with PS4 fans, offering a true free-to-play experience so gamers can jump in and play online.
“With 79 million PS4s sold around the world and more than 80 million monthly active users on PlayStation Network, we’ve built a huge community of gamers who can play together on Fortnite and all online titles. We also offer Fortnite cross-play support with PC, Mac, iOS, and Android devices, expanding the opportunity for Fortnite fans on PS4 to play with even more gamers on other platforms.”
However, continued pressure, plus a very public love-in between Microsoft and Nintendo last week might have proved enough to force a rethink.
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