Cross-Play For Overwatch Is "More Difficult Than People Realize"

Popular battle royale games Fortnite and PUBG have cross-play support, and Activision’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare will introduce it as well at release later this month. But what about Blizzard’s hero shooter Overwatch? Principal producer Wes Yanagi told GameSpot that cross-play is “definitely compelling,” but it’s not likely to happen for Overwatch anytime soon.

“Cross-play is something that would definitely be compelling for players, and as a player, I would love to see it happen. The truth is that implementing cross-play for Overwatch is more difficult than people realise,” Yanagi said.

That being said, Yanagi went on to say that Blizzard is currently looking into cross-play support for Overwatch. “We are exploring how to bring this to Overwatch, but do not have anything to share at this time,” he said.

The issue doesn’t appear to be political or specific to Nintendo, as Nintendo already allows cross-play on Switch with other titles such as Fortnite and Rocket League. Additionally, Phoenix Labs’ upcoming game Dauntless will support cross-play on Switch with PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

No version of Overwatch currently supports cross-play, meaning those on PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Switch can only play with other members of the same community.

Earlier this year, Blizzard spoke about how the company was “excited about the potential” for cross-play support with Overwatch. However, the company said in a statement to Engadget, “There’s still a lot of work to do on both our side and the platforms’ side to determine whether this is something that makes sense for Overwatch, and we’re keeping an eye on how cross-play systems and technology develop.”

Overwatch’s Legendary Edition launches on October 15 for Nintendo Switch. It includes all 31 heroes and 28 maps from the other versions of the game, and voice chat won’t be limited to Nintendo’s own app. For lots more, check out GameSpot’s interview linked below, in which Yanagi talks about the origins of Overwatch on Switch, the possibility of Overwatch characters coming to Smash Bros., and lots more.