14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has surprised many gamers and observers of the gaming industry when it announced that it was aiming to open up the Xbox One to make it easy to create cross-platform play for the PC, at first, and even with other home consoles in the near future.
The first title that is supposed to use the new feature is Rocket League and the platform holder says that it wants to make sure that players have the best experience with their favorite titles without having to deal with artificial barriers between platforms.
Gamespot has received an official response to the initiative from Sony, which states, "PlayStation has been supporting cross-platform play between PC on several software titles starting with Final Fantasy 11 on PS2 and PC back in 2002. We would be happy to have the conversation with any publishers or developers who are interested in cross-platform play."
Having a conversation does not guarantee that the two companies will create simple and easy-to-use ways for those who own an Xbox One to play with or against those who have a PlayStation 4, but it's likely that executives are evaluating the pros and cons of such a decision.
It's more likely that Sony and Microsoft will allow users to interact with the PC more, mainly to project an image of openness and to make sure that their multiplayer-focused titles have healthy populations.
The PlayStation 4 is leading the Xbox One in terms of sales
The Microsoft announcement might be seen as an attempt to make its own device more attractive, basically telling potential customers that there's a future when it will no longer matter whether all their friends have picked up a PS4 because the two consoles will be connected.
Sony has managed to get its home console in the hands of more than 36 million players all over the world and might not be as interested in linking its own PlayStation Network to the Xbox Live but might have to bow to pressure from gamers in the future.
Both console manufacturers have said that they will try to offer extra value to their fans by introducing improved firmware for their devices and by offering interesting exclusive titles and exclusive content for big third-party video games.
Sony has also recently announced that the PlayStation VR virtual reality platform will be launched in October and will be offered for 399 dollars or Euro.