Fortnite on Xbox Getting Crossplay on All Platforms Soon, but Not With PlayStation

Epic Games confirmed that Fortnite players on the Xbox One will soon be able to play with those on [...]

Epic Games confirmed that Fortnite players on the Xbox One will soon be able to play with those on the PC and mobile devices, though PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players will still remain separate.

Following the recent news that Fortnite would soon be supporting crossplay between the newly-announced mobile version, the PC and Mac platforms, and the PlayStation 4, there were some questions about how the Xbox One would play into this. Considering how Microsoft and the Xbox One have helped lead the crossplay charge between the console and PC with games like Minecraft and Rocket League, it seemed strange that the platform would be excluded, but the newest announcement from Epic Games confirmed that the feature is indeed in the works.

"We're happy to announce today that in partnership with our friends at Microsoft, Fortnite will feature cross-play, cross-progression, and cross-purchase, between Xbox One, PC, Mac, iOS and (in the next few months) Android," the Epic Games announcement read.

The announcement continued to address some of the concerns mentioned previously regarding crossplay on the Xbox One by referencing Microsoft's push for having the feature included in games and throughout different platforms.

"Contrary to what may have been implied, Microsoft has long been a leading voice in supporting cross-platform play, connecting players across PC, mobile and all consoles," the post from Epic Games continued. "We've been working together with them over the last several months to make this possible, and will bring this functionality to Fornite players on Xbox right along with other platforms."

The crossplay feature won't be mandatory, however, as players will be able to opt in or out of the multiplayer feature.

PS4 players, however, still won't be able to play with those on the Xbox One. Fortnite will soon support crossplay for the PS4 as well with those players able to play with users on the PC/Mac and mobile platforms, but it appears that the crossplay groups will be kept separate from the Xbox One users. This separation is just the latest instance of a long line of crossplay discussions between the two leading consoles, though it seems that Sony is still not quite ready to turn on the crossplay.

Crossplay between the two consoles in Fortnite was a possibility at one time, however. Back in September, crossplay between the PS4 and Xbox One versions was accidently turned on, a mistake that showed the capability was there and appeared to be ready to go. Xbox's Phil Spencer commented on the occurrence at the time while saying that he wished the crossplay would've stuck around.

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