Xbox and Nintendo are crossplay buddies, but Sony is having none of it

Sony is definitely the leading console of the current generation. Nintendo’s Switch is a fantastic console, but it’s only had a year and change to show off some Mario and Zelda. Xbox is pretty good, but undoubtedly Sony’s library reigns supreme. Sony is on top and isn’t giving up any advantage.

That has become painfully obvious as of late. Sony doesn’t seem to want to share, and that mentality has spilled over into relations with other platforms. Cross-platform play or “crossplay” is a fairly new innovation for gaming. This idea started with accounts that can be linked to multiple devices, sharing information and progress. But now the dream is being fully realised, allowing players to have a standard multiplayer experience regardless of platform. That is unless you are using a PlayStation 4.

More and more this stubbornness to play ball with rivals Microsoft and Nintendo has been dismaying. But it has gotten worse. The most recent and egregious offence has been Fortnite: Battle Royale (covered in detail here). Players who had linked their Epic account to the PS4, and signed in on Switch, found themselves rejected. Apparently, Sony’s disdain for crossplay reaches to the point of manipulating a third party account to enact their will.

Microsoft and Nintendo meanwhile are definitely garnering some positive press on the crossplay front. As such the two big players in the gaming industry are teaming up to bring crossplay to the people. It’s great to see such friendship. Also, yeah that kissy love love is a bit of side dish to what is essentially major shade thrown in Sony’s direction.

It is worth saying that some people tend to view innovations simply as a desperate ploy to bring in new business. One cannot deny that Microsoft and Nintendo have some ground to cover, and crossplay definitely helps. I think Sony’s ego has become over-inflated this generation, exceedingly so as of late. It definitely calls into question how they will fair in the future. As of now, Sony is trading away some of the good will it has accrued recently. Hopefully in due time the ABXY’s, the triangle-square-circle-crosses, and the Joy-cons can unite. Then we can all go together in the promised land server.