With the announcement of Rocket League headed to Nintendo Switch, we also learned that the game will be cross-platform compatible with the Xbox One and PC. Sony unfortunately decided to opt out of that deal, but Nintendo says the focus on cross-platform multiplayer isn’t exclusive to games like Rocket League.
Nintendo of America’s communications director Charlie Scibetta recently sat down with VentureBeat to discuss the future of cross-platform multiplayer on the Switch and other consoles and it really speaks volumes about how much Nintendo’s attitude has changed when trying to reach gamers that might not have a Nintendo system already.
Our publisher and developer relations team is always talking to different companies and seeing what we can work out. I’m really happy just as a gamer, let alone working for the company, that that’s going to be possible, that cross platform play. We’re trying to be more flexible as a company. We’re reaching out to try and get people to interact with our IP. In this case Rocket League is their IP on our system, but we’re trying to get people involved with us in any way we can, whether that’s on mobile now, or through Universal Studios parks, or through licensing deals like Vans.
This quote really exemplifies how Nintendo is turning itself around by making its IPs more consumer-friendly. Nintendo has stopped short of making its games available on other platforms, but the more third-party games that support cross-platform play with PC and Xbox means more gamers are exposed to games they might not have played.
We’re trying to be more flexible and bring more people in. In the case of Rocket League, it’s just being flexible and working with them to make their game come to life on our system. If people want to play cross platform, we want to enable that.
In my humble opinion, this is a good move for Nintendo that’s only offset by Sony not being willing to commit to cross-platform play for both the Xbox One and the Nintendo Switch. Honestly, with multiplayer focused games it really shouldn’t matter which console you purchase the game on, as long as you’re having fun and able to play with the whole community and not just the subset of people who bought the game on the same console as you.
What do you think about Nintendo’s new strategy of considering cross-platform play for multiplayer games? Do you want to see more of this? Let us know in the comments.
Nintendo eShop Card – $20
