'Gears Of War 4' Multiplayer Now Allows Cross-Play Between Xbox One And PC

Gears of War 4's Horde mode long supported cross-platform gameplay, but the more traditional player-versus-player (PVP) aspect of the game didn't allow Xbox One and PC gamers to play with each other. Now that's changed, as The Coalition announced that you can now compete with players on both platforms through the Social Quickplay selection.

The announcement is the result of a weekend test from the studio where it allowed players from both platforms to participate in Versus multiplayer matches. The data it gathered showed that 115,000 unique participants played 750,000 matches. Over 90 percent of those matches included players from both PC and Xbox One. However, the percentage gap between Xbox One players to PC players was staggering, with Windows 10 gamers making up just 9% of the entire group.

Still, that didn’t stop The Coalition from making the PvP-centric gameplay a cross-platform feature. According to the announcement, these first few months will be considered a “trial period” for the game mode so the developers can listen to player feedback. The plan is to make the feature permanent at some point in the future.

Two multiplayer modes that will stay independent to each platform are the Core and Competitive variants of PvP. The studio said that's because “our Ranked experiences are as closely matched and competitive as possible.” The Coalition is also working on a better solution for Core and Competitive matches on the PC so players can have the same experience as their console counterparts.

Regardless, the addition of cross-play PvP gameplay is a major step for The Coalition, and an even larger move for Microsoft, which is trying to add more games to its Xbox Play Anywhere collection. Other titles with multiplayer gameplay could use similar features to expand their fan base, especially if it's done as well as it was with Gears of War 4.

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NameGears of War 4
TypeShooter, Action/Adventure
DeveloperThe Coalition
PublisherMicrosoft Studios
PlatformsPC, Xbox One
Where To BuyXbox StoreAmazonBest BuyTargetWalmartGameStop
Release DateOctober 11, 2016
  • alextheblue
    I've been impressed with Gears 4, overall. The have to fix the Horde bug with the new (well to to Gears 4) Clocktower map and the Kestrel getting stuck inside a building. It seems like they're engaging with their community a lot and they're serious about improving the game and adding new content. I love the card skill system in Horde mode, though I feel they should add a passive bonus at "dead" levels, and add a "No Limits" card slot that lets you use a single skill from other classes.
    Reply
  • wifiburger
    this franchise is dead, i'll play gears 1 remake any day before this turd
    Reply
  • dstarr3
    Good luck to any console players going up against PC players. They're gonna need it.
    Reply
  • thburninator
    For the social (non-competitive) aspect of PvP, this is really cool. Sure, it's highly likely that PC gamers will have a distinct edge over console gamers (higher framerates, better response time for peripherals, etc.), but for the social aspect it's great. In my case, for example, I have friends who play Overwatch, one on Xbox, one on PS4, and I play on PC. I would love to play with them, but being all on different platforms makes that impossible currently. I hope these trial-runs go well so that cross-platform play can become more of a norm.
    Reply