The Daily Grind: How important is cross-platform play?

It's not important. The only reason they do it is for another avenue of cash flow.

Also if you play any pvp I think you will have a major disadvantage on a console vs a player on a pc.

I think cross-platform play is great and if the game is on both platforms than I hope they make it possible. In FFXI it was one of the best parts of the game (cross-platform and cross-geographical). The truth is that if you are looking for a party you don't care if they are on a PS2 or a PC. You just want people in the group with you. In fact I think cross-platform play is what has made FFXI so successful for so many years.

In over 60 days of playtime on FFXI I don't think I ever asked if nor did anyone ask me what system I was on. It just wasn't relevant. In fact there was no disadvantage to either system until late in the game. In FFXI you are able to create a 7 line macro which is great early on, but later in the game with all your equipment swapping it became increasingly difficult on the PS2 as opposed to the PC where you could download 3rd party macro systems. But all that meant for the PS2 players was they would have to work harder to keep up. Which they did. In fact some of the best FFXI players I played with stated they were on the PS2.

As for the VOIP issue, I think that if the ability is there to both type and chat, similar to home, it's a win-win! Plus it's not like you can't type on consoles with the little keyboard PS3 attachment. Maybe SOE should include the MIC in the PC version and a Keyboard in the PS3 version for a slightly higher price. Similar to SOCOM or FFXI on PS2 (the HDD).

And oh, dear god, don't seperate the servers. Let people play with their friends no matter what platform. I would love to play with my PC buddies while I'm on my PS3.

Frankly, I think cross-platform play for most MMO's is too LTTP. The camps are divided and cultures distinct with rather insignificant overlap that's not worth targeting with significant development resources.

NT_

Segmenting your player base so that they can't play together is a bad idea.

But then I support MMOs moving towards the single server ideal, where everyone plays in the same world.

In ffxi anyone that played over about a day on console bought a USB keyboard, problem solved. You could buy a mouse also, and I tried it once, but I prefered my controller. One could actually switch the controls to use a controller while on PC, or a keyboard/mouse while on console. Avoiding the 'others, on comp. or console was never an issue.

It was actually cool to think someone else was playing on something else.

The only thing that ever came up was a few interface effects. I forget which it was (I played it on console for 3 years, then pc for 6months) but one of the two could alter some effects, weather, lighting, that may have given a slight advantage to one group; however we were all in an alliance against the beastmen so noone cared.

Id be more likely to avoid the trash talking racist console users which is why I prefer games on the PC. Signing into Xbox Live to play a game is like going to a KKK meeting.

That and I doubt any console based MMO could have a real complex crafting system. Something like DCOnline might work fine since it sounds like nothing but a glorified fighter game and not a "typical" MMO like most of us are used to.

I couldn't care less about console play. I *am* a little concerned that the game is being dumbed down to play for the console though.

Cross-platform idea is strictly motivated by the potential big money, there's nothing practical about it.

I have nothing against players with vastly different backgrounds, but there's a certain standard which I expect in terms of social intelligence. I just don't see console players being all that willing to be social due to the lack of keyboard. Granted voice communication solves that, but still there's only so much you can do with a console joystick before it becomes too big of a task to even bother.

Personally I think game publishers should denounce consoles until the console manufacturers (SONY,NINTENDO, and MICROSOFT) agree on an open source system that is compatible with PCs.

It's such a waste of time and resources for any game publisher to be "porting" one game to multiple systems just because of compatibility issues.

For me its quite critical. Certainly I'll never try a MMO on consoles (at least one that's on multiple platforms) if I can't access my PC playing friends. Hell I'd love to be able to move between couch and PC playing a single character.

Platform never comes up in FFXI. I've played on every platform myself. The game is exactly the same on every one of them. You can use a controller on PC, you play with only keyboard on consoles.

So... what's the difference? Resolution.. but wtf does that matter to the other players with whom you're playing? Seriously?

If there is no cross-platform play in DCUO, it's a slap in the face to the community and a complete admission of ineptitude. (an admission I personally don't need from the like of SOE)

As a Phantasy Star Universe player, there's really no difference between the PC and PS2 players in terms of communication. Most PS2 players have a keyboard plugged in (the PS2 has USB slots like all modern consoles).

Also, it's very nice to be able to switch between systems. The PS2 is definitely showing its age, and having a PC version where you can literally log in to the same game world is a plus.

I would pay extra to play on a server that did NOT have console players on it. Or much more likely I just would tend to skip any game that lumped Xbox Live freaks into my MMO.