Cross-platform play is a hotly debated topic within our industry, because more and more games are allowing players on various platforms to play together, like with Fortnite and Rocket League (the latter of which is gearing up for its Friends Update to bring an in-game friends list to the game). That said, people have often wondered why this often isn't happening with PS4 players. People have pointed the finger at Sony, but Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios chairman Shawn Layden has said in an interview with Game Informer that this isn't the case.
"We got to that place in Fortnite and it seems to be going reasonably well, from what I can tell," he said. "The Rocket League light up will happen soon. People keep saying, "Why doesn't Sony allow more people to have it?" We're open for business on this one. All it takes is for publishers and developers who wish to permission it. As ever, just work with your PlayStation account manager, and they will walk you through the steps that we've learned through our partnership with Epic on how this works. I don't believe right now there is any gating factor on that. I think they're open to make proposals, because the Fortnite thing worked pretty well."
That's not the end of things though, as ResetEra user Aokiji shared a response to this in the form of a quote from developer Chucklefish's CEO, in which we hear the following:
"We made many requests for crossplay (both through our account manager and directly with higher ups) all the way up until release month. We were told in no uncertain terms that it was not going to happen."
"From our side, we can *literally* toggle a switch and have it working. Of course policy work might be more complicated for Sony. Just wanted to provide some balance on the issue and say that it certainly isn't a question of developers having not contacted their account managers or having dropped the ball. We were told no."
Hi-Rez Studios' CEO Stew Chisam also took to Twitter to respond to Sony and Layden as well, saying that "it's time to stop playing favorites and tear down the crossplay/progression wall for everyone. We have @SMITEGame, @PaladinsGame, @RealmRoyale ready to go when you are."
It seems Layden's claims have gotten under the skins of these developers then, and it remains to be seen whether further responses are given.
What do you make of this whole situation?
