With the rise of multiplayer games, crossplay has become a highly sought-after feature. Gamers today are looking for the ability to play with friends across different platforms, regardless of whether they use PlayStation, Xbox, or PC. Gotham Knights, the 2023 action role-playing game set in the Batman universe, developed by WB Games Montréal, has generated excitement for its cooperative multiplayer experience. However, the question remains: does Gotham Knights support crossplay? In this article, we’ll take a deep dive into crossplay functionality in Gotham Knights, exploring what it offers and whether cross-platform play is possible for users across various gaming systems.
What is Crossplay?
Before diving into Gotham Knights, let’s first define crossplay. Crossplay, or cross-platform play, is the ability for gamers on different platforms to play together in a shared multiplayer environment. For example, if one person is playing on a PlayStation 5 and another on an Xbox Series X, they could team up to complete missions or compete against each other in the same game session. Crossplay breaks down the traditional barriers between consoles and PCs, making gaming more inclusive and ensuring that friends and communities aren’t split based on the platform they choose.
Crossplay has become especially important in multiplayer games like Fortnite, Call of Duty, and Minecraft, where maintaining large, active player bases is essential for sustained success. However, not all games include crossplay at launch, and developers sometimes patch it in later as an update.
The Launch of Gotham Knights and Its Multiplayer Setup
Gotham Knights launched in 2023 as a cooperative action RPG that focuses on the legacy of Gotham City’s heroes following the death of Bruce Wayne (Batman). The game allows players to take control of one of four characters—Nightwing, Batgirl, Robin, and Red Hood—each with unique abilities and fighting styles. While the game features both solo and cooperative multiplayer modes, the latter is the most significant appeal for many players. Teaming up with a friend to patrol the dark streets of Gotham, solve crimes, and take down supervillains makes for an exciting and immersive experience.
The multiplayer mode in Gotham Knights allows up to two players to team up online, adding a layer of cooperative gameplay where teamwork becomes vital. Players can strategize, combine their unique abilities, and take on larger and more complex challenges together.
Is Gotham Knights Crossplay?
Unfortunately, as of 2023, Gotham Knights does not support crossplay. This means that players on PlayStation cannot team up with friends playing on Xbox or PC, limiting the game’s cooperative multiplayer to the same platform. For example, if you’re playing on PlayStation 5, you can only join co-op games with other PlayStation users. The same applies to Xbox Series X and PC players, meaning that multiplayer teams must be restricted to their respective ecosystems.
This is a disappointment for many gamers who were hoping to play Gotham Knights with friends regardless of platform. Crossplay has become a widely requested feature in modern multiplayer games, and its absence in Gotham Knights at launch was met with criticism from parts of the fanbase. The limited scope of co-op play means that it’s more challenging to coordinate with friends who may own different gaming systems, effectively reducing the potential for larger online communities to thrive within the game.
Why Isn’t Crossplay Available in Gotham Knights?
There are several reasons why crossplay may not be available in Gotham Knights. One of the primary challenges involves the technical difficulties in synchronizing gameplay across multiple platforms. Each system—whether it’s a PlayStation, Xbox, or PC—operates on different infrastructures and networks. Ensuring smooth, seamless performance across all of them requires additional development time, resources, and testing, which can be costly for studios.
Additionally, balancing gameplay mechanics and ensuring parity across platforms can be difficult. For example, PC players often have access to more customizable controls, better frame rates, and enhanced graphics, which may create an uneven playing field compared to consoles. By limiting multiplayer to the same platform, developers can better optimize the experience for each group of players and ensure that no one has an unfair advantage.
Another potential reason could be publisher decisions. Crossplay requires coordination between different companies, such as Sony, Microsoft, and Steam, and not all of them are always willing to work together. This can create hurdles in enabling cross-platform play, despite the demand from the player base.
Will Gotham Knights Ever Get Crossplay?
While Gotham Knights currently lacks crossplay, there is always a possibility that the feature could be added in future updates. Some games launch without crossplay but later introduce it through patches or post-launch content updates. This has been the case with several major multiplayer titles, where developers listen to player feedback and work to implement crossplay to expand the player base.
However, there has been no official confirmation from WB Games Montréal or the game’s publisher, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, about whether crossplay will be introduced in the future. Developers may choose to prioritize other updates and improvements to the game before tackling crossplay, but the demand for the feature from the gaming community remains strong. If enough players express interest, the studio may decide to invest resources into developing cross-platform functionality down the line.
Alternatives to Crossplay: Cross-Gen Multiplayer
While Gotham Knights doesn’t support crossplay, it does offer cross-generation multiplayer. This means that players using different generations of the same platform can play together. For instance, someone playing Gotham Knights on a PlayStation 5 can join a co-op session with a friend playing on a PlayStation 4, and the same applies to Xbox Series X and Xbox One players.
This feature is a welcome addition for families or groups of friends who may not all have upgraded to the latest generation of consoles. Cross-generation play helps bridge the gap between older and newer systems, allowing more players to experience the game together. However, it’s still a limited form of multiplayer compared to full crossplay, which would encompass all platforms.
Player Reactions and Community Feedback
The lack of crossplay in Gotham Knights has sparked discussions within the gaming community. Many players, especially those with friends on different platforms, have expressed their frustration at being unable to team up across systems. With the rise of other popular games that offer crossplay, such as Fortnite, Call of Duty: Warzone, and Apex Legends, expectations have shifted, and gamers now see crossplay as a standard feature in multiplayer games.
Nevertheless, some players are more understanding of the challenges involved in implementing crossplay. They acknowledge that Gotham Knights still offers a compelling co-op experience within its platform limitations and that the technical challenges of creating crossplay are not insignificant. Additionally, for those who already have friends on the same platform, the absence of crossplay doesn’t detract from their enjoyment of the game.
The Future of Crossplay in Gaming
As the gaming industry continues to evolve, crossplay is becoming an increasingly important feature for multiplayer titles. With each new generation of consoles and the rise of PC gaming, the ability to play with friends across different systems is more important than ever. Gamers want the freedom to choose their platform without being cut off from their friends who may use different devices.
While Gotham Knights doesn’t currently support crossplay, the demand for this feature in future games is unlikely to go away. As developers and publishers recognize the value of cross-platform play, more games may launch with crossplay from day one, or at the very least, include it in post-launch updates. This trend is already gaining momentum, and it’s possible that WB Games Montréal and other studios will follow suit to meet player expectations in the future.
Conclusion
In summary, Gotham Knights delivers an exciting and immersive multiplayer experience but falls short when it comes to crossplay. While the absence of this feature limits the potential for players to team up across different platforms, the game still offers cooperative multiplayer within the same ecosystem, as well as cross-generation play. For fans of the Batman universe and multiplayer games, Gotham Knights is still worth diving into, especially for those who can coordinate play sessions with friends on the same platform.
As the demand for crossplay grows, players will continue to advocate for its inclusion in more titles. Only time will tell if WB Games Montréal will respond to this demand with future updates, but for now, Gotham Knights remains a game that shines within its existing multiplayer framework, even without the feature that so many gamers were hoping for.
