Back in March, Rocket League developer Psyonix revealed that it had started working on cross-network play capabilities for the beloved vehicular soccer title that would allow Xbox One gamers on Xbox Live and PlayStation 4 gamers on the PlayStation Network to play together.
Psyonix then said that they already figured out how to make cross-play work, and it just needed time to get everything up and running. The developer already rolled out cross-network play support between the Xbox One and PC in May, which further intensified the wait for cross-play between the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4.
The wait will soon come to an end though, as Psyonix VP Jeremy Dunham said that the work on the proposed cross-network play between the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4 is now complete.
According to Dunham, all that is needed is for Psyonix to receive approval from Sony. Once the company gives the go signal, the developer will be able to get the breakthrough feature up and running within a few hours.
Dunham could not say as to when the approval would be received by Psyonix. He mentioned that while the approval from Sony and the cross-play feature could come as soon as tomorrow, there is always the possibility that the process could take much longer.
"We just don't know - we're anxiously awaiting that, just like the rest of our fans," Dunham said.
Dunham, however, made it clear that the pending approval from Sony was not because the company was reluctant to break the barrier between the gaming networks, but because Sony was making sure that everything is functioning as it should before giving the green light.
It is likely not a matter of if, but rather a matter of when, with regards to Sony's pending approval. Once the feature goes online though, it will be a breakthrough in the gaming industry, as it will be the first time that players from the different video game networks of Microsoft and Sony will be able to meet each other as teammates or opponents in a single game.
As to whether Sony is being forced to accept the feature with the publicity surrounding cross-network play, we could not say for sure. As the market leader over Microsoft, Sony has little to no incentive in supporting the feature, but if it wants to follow through with its stance of putting the gamers first, giving its approval for cross-play seems like a sure thing.
