There has been much maligning of Sony recently due to the industry giant’s stern refusal to jump into the crossplay pool with some of its competitors. Whilst there has not been any specific reasoning given for the reluctance, a former Sony Online top dog believes its very simple.
Speaking on their Twitter account, John Smedley, a former head of Sony Online Entertainment, recalls his time at the top and remembers the very simple reasoning why crossplay wasn’t ever a consideration for the PlayStation brand.
“When I was at Sony, the stated reason internally for this was money,” tweeted Smedley. “They didn’t like someone buying something on an Xbox and it being used on a Playstation. simple as that. dumb reason, but there it is”. Smedley also mentioned that he believed that the issue will be resolved provided “we keep the pressure up.”
Let’s face it, it isn’t like we hadn’t have figured this out ourselves. It was believed by most that the reasoning simply came down to the idea that cross-fraternizing between brands, may somehow, somewhere, cause somebody to possibly lose some money. But at least we have an opinion from an employee who probably heard it from the horse’s mouth.
It remains to be seen whether Sony will reverse its current decision on the crossplay controversy but, at this point, clutching onto that particular stance in the modern age seems more PR hassle than it’s worth.
Ex-Sony Online head gives reason for lack of crossplay [Twitter]
Source: Destructoid Former Sony Online executive believes there’s a ‘dumb reason’ for crossplay avoidance