Sony Finally Gives In, Flips The Switch On Fortnite Cross-Play

For months now, Fortnite players have been lamenting a restrictive Sony policy that locked Epic accounts to the PS4. While those Epic accounts could be used on other platforms like PC and mobile, they notably couldn't be used on other consoles like Nintendo Switch and Xbox One. This, of course, also meant that there wasn't any cross-play between players PS4 and others on Switch and Xbox, despite the fact that cross-play is possible on those other consoles.

It turns out that complaining loudly and frequently about something is a good way to motivate change, as Sony has given in. Today, the company announced that it will begin a beta test that will enable cross-play support in some multi-platform games, the first of which being Fortnite.

"Following a comprehensive evaluation process, SIE has identified a path toward supporting cross-platform features for select third party content," Sony said in a post to the PlayStation Blog. "We recognize that PS4 players have been eagerly awaiting an update, and we appreciate the community's continued patience as we have navigated through this issue to find a solution."

On top of cross-platform play between PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, this beta test will also unlock cross-platform progression in Fortnite. That means if you have a Switch and a PS4, an Xbox One and PS4, or all three, you can play Fortnite across all of them and have access to your collection of cosmetics and your Battle Pass progress. Importantly, this also means that your purchases will be available across platforms as well, so you can spend money on a Switch or Xbox and have access to that content on PS4.

For now, Fortnite is the only title confirmed to be getting cross-play functionality, but Sony says that it will update us about other games that will gain these capabilities in the future. We're also not sure how long this beta will last, so this is definitely something to keep an eye on in the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned.