When one of the biggest names in computer software up and starts to develop consoles, it's not odd to think that said company would have its audience be able to play together on the two platforms, right? Hell, it actually seems like a likelihood. However, while we're not there yet, that doesn't mean that day isn't not coming.
With Games for Windows Live closing, AusGamers decided to ask Microsoft Studio's General Manager, Phil Spencer, about the possibility for cross-play between PC and the company's next-gen gadget. His reply?
"I'm not allowed to leak things [smiles]. But I think what you're talking about makes a lot of sense. Now you have differences in Windows gaming and console gaming around control and input... in fact if you go back to Shadow Run on Xbox 360 - something I worked on - we had PC players playing against Xbox 360 customers. We didn't have tremendous success with that, but we learnt a lot from it."
Sometimes it's not what a person says that's so interesting, but rather, what they don't say. It takes a lot more effort to say, "I'm not allowed to leak things," than a simple, "No." Is Spencer hinting at something, or just having a bit of fun and keeping the audience in anticipation?
He continued with some of the history of Microsoft's brief foray into cross-play, "And then earlier this year we released Skulls of the Shogun, which was a game we launched on all three platforms on the same day, and you could start on one platform and then save the game to the Cloud and play across any of the screens and progress. And then Halo: Spartan Assault has some links between Halo 4 and Spartan Assault, even though they're very different games."
"This connected ecosystem across all the different devices is definitely where I think the future of gaming is going; you don't have to do it as a developer, but you have the capability and I think a system like Xbox Live across all those screens where you know who someone is and who their friends are, what their Achievements are and their progression is really critical to that."
Sony already has plans to allow players to use its own handheld, the PS Vita, to play certain PlayStation 4 games. It would stand to reason that Microsoft has something to counter Sony's plan of attack. With Xbox One set to get possible mouse and keyboard support, PC cross-play could be the company's ace in the hole.
Hopefully the company will provide more details when the Xbox One launches this November.
