MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Well isn’t Microsoft just full of surprises.
Having set parts of the fandom alight with its recent comments about the marriage of Xbox and PC, Microsoft has now said that it is fully embracing cross-platform online multiplayer. But we’re not just talking between Xbox and PC – Microsoft is happy for its gamers to compete against rival console platform owners.
In addition to natively supporting cross-platform play between Xbox One and Windows 10 games that use Xbox Live, we’re enabling developers to support cross-network play as well. This means players on Xbox One and Windows 10 using Xbox Live will be able to play with players on different online multiplayer networks – including other console and PC networks,” ID@Xbox director Chris Charla said.
Of course, it’s up to game developers to support this feature, and Xbox Live players will always have the option of choosing to play only with other Xbox Live players.”
In other words, the functionality will be dependent on both developers and Sony, but providing everyone plays ball, a brand new online future could well be on the horizon.
Microsoft has also confirmed that Rocket League will shortly be introducing cross-platform play for Xbox One and PC owners. And developer Psyonix seems to have even as gone as far as teasing the possibility of Xbox-PlayStation multiplayer in its game.
Expect to see Rocket League cross-network play working on Xbox One and PC later this spring, with information regarding other platforms coming soon,” it teased.
