There has been a lot of talk about cross-play compatibility between games these days. The industry's multiplayer market is built around online play and many games are multi-platform these days, so it's no surprise that some gamers have wanted cross-play. Well, the Fortnite developers think that console cross-play will eventually become an inevitable staple in online gaming.
GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that Epic Games CEO, Tim Sweeney, is of the belief that cross-play will become inevitable for most online multiplayer games that are available across multiple platforms. Sweeney told the outlet during this year's Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, California...
I think it's inevitable now. Games have become social experiences in the same way that Facebook or Twitter have, and these experiences only really make sense if gamers can communicate with all of their friends.
This statement was preceded by Sweeney explaining that today's technological society is constantly moving forward and advancing. The industry is becoming ever-more interconnected, and Sweeney believes that it is inevitable that all devices will share some form of interconnectivity in the near future.
Sweeney's epiphany came during the burgeoning of core game revenue and adoption rates in the mobile sector, where China and South Korea are leading the way in consuming hardcore games like Lineage II and Fortnite and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds. These typically core games are usually only soundly successful on home consoles or PCs, but thanks to advancements in middleware and improvements in mobile hardware technology, there is now a budding marketplace for hardcore games to thrive.
Typically, mobile sectors are dominated by casual games with predatory monetary systems, but with Sweeney seeing games like Fortnite find a stable footing of success on mobile devices, it was only a matter of time before gamers would eventually move to home consoles or PC to play these kind of games after getting a taste on mobile devices.
One of the big issues plaguing home consoles at the moment is the lack of cross-play connectivity, and this barrier is something that Sweeney believes will eventually dissolve over time.
We've seen glimpses of cross-play connectivity rear its head for the Xbox One and PS4 in recent times, but usually as a mistake. It happened with Fortnite last year, but due to Sony not signing off on allowing PS4 gamers to play with Nintendo Switch or Xbox One gamers, it means that consoles will continue to be segregated from each other. Microsoft, however, has made some headway in making connections with Nintendo, allowing Nintendo Switch owners and Xbox One owners to play some games via cross-play.
It appears that the only roadblock in preventing true cross-play across all currently available home consoles and major gaming platforms is Sony. But as Sweeney points out, with so many services connecting gamers across social media, it's just a matter of time before consumers will inevitably want to compete against and play with their friends across different gaming devices.
Sweeney seems to be ready for the cross-play revolution. Given that Fortnite already allows console gamers to play with PC gamers, the team at Epic hopes to eventually enable console cross-play, too.
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