Cross Platform gaming, or cross-play, is a topic that is hot on every gamer’s lips nowadays with gamers everywhere wanting to play with, and against, their friends on other platforms. With that being said, it will come as no surprise should Apex Legends choose to follow games, like Fortnite, down the cross-play path. And why shouldn't they?
So, for those of you also asking the question around cross-play for Apex Legends, Respawn - producers of Titanfall and Apex Legends, have confirmed that cross-play is in the works but has not yet indicated when they will be adding it in to the game that has taken the Battle Royale genre by storm.
Drew McCoy, the lead producer at Respawn, said to Eurogamer that they plan “to allow players to play with their friends on other platforms” at some point. This obviously generated a whole lot of buzz! It is likely that cross-play on Apex Legends will look a lot like cross-play with Epic Games, where gamers will create an account, possibly through Origin, and link their platforms to this central account, which will then be used to add gamers on other platforms and squad up with them - but this is all just educated guessing.
McCoy also said in the same interview that cross-progression will, unfortunately, not be possible because of how the game was set up in it's early days of production and this can not be reconciled. So, if you are looking to play Apex Legends with your friends on other platforms, you'll be doing it for some good old fun, and not for adding kills and wins to your counters.
Apex Legends is currently free and available on PS4, Xbox One and PC. Whether it will be making an appearance on Switch, mobile, and other platforms is still to be seen.
So here's to hoping that cross-play finds it's way to Apex Legends very soon! Until then, enjoy the first season, look forward to new legends, choose your drops wisely, and don't get bamboozled!
Now some of you newer generation gamers are thinking why would I want a remade retro console? Well, this thing is shaping up to be pretty cool and quite advanced. It includes things like WiFi (WOW), two colour touch screen controllers, HDMI and USB ports (so it will work with modern TVs) and - wait for it - RGB LIGHTING! It can't get much cooler than that!
This console will be a hit for young and old alike. It's designed to bring the social lounge aspect back into gaming and will be simple enough to use and play for even the most technologically disadvantaged folk and no-skill gamers among us. The Amico's ease of play and simplicity will definitely be a party maker, and if you have more than 2 people at your party (is it even a party with 2 people?), there's a controller app for the Amico that allows you to connect up to 8 players into a game! They are also including competitive online multiplayer and leader boards so that you can compete with your friends for bragging rights and some unique achievement trophies.
The console will be hitting the market late 2020 and will be coming in at the very tempting price of about $180, with games going for $2.99 to $7.99, every one of them exclusive to the Amico! The console will launch with several built-in titles and over 20 games in its online store, including Earthworm Jim. As they said, they are creating a console that parents will want to buy, not one that they are asked to buy. That's a bold statement but Intellivision is really working hard at making the Amico appealing, and there is definitely a large and growing group of gamers who would be into this console.
This console will definitely do well on the market and will surely become a feature in most homes, with it's highly niche target market and affordability. Intellivision is doing a lot right with the Amico, but let me not bore you by going on about this console, here is a video from Intellivision themselves telling you exactly what you can expect from the Amico.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xokUnn1lBGA
And if that's not enough for you, check out their website;
www.intellivisionentertainment.com
This was a wise move on the side of Psyonix as it brings them more resources, both human and financial, to continue to support Rocket League's growing competitive e-sports league. They also plan to bring the game to the Epic Games store later this year.
Once the game appears on the Epic Games store, it is unsure if it will remain in the Steam store but all sources and evidence are suggesting that it will no longer be available to purchase through Steam.
Now what does the mean for those of you who have already purchased and logged some serious time through Steam?
In a statement made by Epic, it seems clear that there are pre and post Epic store phases. Currently (pre-Epic), the game is available to purchase on Steam and it is playable and supported (obviously). Later (post-Epic), the game will be available to purchase in the Epic store but will still be playable and supported on Steam for those who have already purchased it there. However, Epic has not officially announced that it will stop selling the game on steam, it's all guessing at the moment, but that does seem like the most likely outcome as Steam and Epic are direct competitors.
This buy over should not come as a surprise to anyone as Psyonix and Epic have had a long-standing partnership, dating back to the early days of Unreal Engine and games like Unreal Tournament 2004. Psyonix was even founded a short distance from Epic Games headquarters in 2001. Both companies are also well known for pushing the bar in cross-platform gaming, with Psyonix supporting cross-play in Rocket League and Epic supporting it in Fortnite (which helped fuel its rise).
However beneficial this acquisition is for Epic and Psyonix, it will raise many heads as Epic continues to spend huge amounts of resources to chip away at Valve's dominance in PC game sales. Epic purchasing a studio with a hit title, and pulling that away from Steam will come as a huge blow to Valve.