Sony finally enables Fortnite cross-play for PS4

PS4 users playing Fortnite will soon be able to play seamlessly across their PS4 and non-Sony consoles, as well as play with friends who use different consoles, according to a post on the Sony PlayStation blog.

This is a big and surprising move given that Sony has been vocal about not allowing cross-platform play for Fortnite players across multiple consoles in recent months.

But it seems Sony may have buckled under pressure from players, who have been demanding a cross-play feature since Fortnite launched in 2017.

"Following a comprehensive evaluation process, SIE has identified a path toward supporting cross-platform features for select third party content," the Sony PlayStation team writes.

"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."

And there won't be long for players to wait. According to Sony, an open beta will begin on September 26, which will allow cross-platform gameplay for PlayStation 4, Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Mac operating systems.

Sony says it's rolling out cross-play in open beta so that it can maintain a good-quality experience. Interestingly, the blog post also suggested that other games might be getting cross-play support in the future too. 

Becca Caddy

Becca is a contributor to TechRadar, a freelance journalist and author. She’s been writing about consumer tech and popular science for more than ten years, covering all kinds of topics, including why robots have eyes and whether we’ll experience the overview effect one day. She’s particularly interested in VR/AR, wearables, digital health, space tech and chatting to experts and academics about the future. She’s contributed to TechRadar, T3, Wired, New Scientist, The Guardian, Inverse and many more. Her first book, Screen Time, came out in January 2021 with Bonnier Books. She loves science-fiction, brutalist architecture, and spending too much time floating through space in virtual reality.