Is Black Ops 4 Crossplay or Cross Platform in 2023? A Historical and Technical Analysis
The ability to play with friends and gamers from different platforms has become a hot topic. With the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, players were eager to know if they could enjoy crossplay or cross-platform gaming. In this article, we will explore the world of crossplay, its history in the Call of Duty series, and whether Black Ops 4 supports this feature.
What is Crossplay and Cross Platform?
Before diving into the specifics of Black Ops 4, let’s clarify some terminology. “Crossplay” refers to the ability to play with gamers on different platforms, such as Xbox, PlayStation, and PC, in the same multiplayer matches. “Cross platform” extends this concept further, allowing players from various platforms to not only play together but also carry their progress and content seamlessly between them.
History of Crossplay in Call of Duty Series
To understand the status of crossplay in Black Ops 4, it’s essential to look back at the history of this feature in the Call of Duty franchise. Historically, Call of Duty titles had platform-specific multiplayer communities. Crossplay was a distant dream for fans until recently.
Is Black Ops 4 Crossplay or Cross Platform in 2023?
As an avid Call of Duty fan, the question of whether one can play Black Ops 4 across platforms has been top of mind lately. With crossplay becoming an increasingly popular feature that binds gaming communities together regardless of the system one plays on, there is much interest around whether Treyarch’s 2018 entry supports it.
In this 4,000+ word essay, I aim to provide a definitive and insightful answer through technical and historical analysis. We’ll explore what exactly crossplay refers to, the rationale behind crossplay, how other Call of Duty titles have adopted crossplay capabilities, and the specifics around Black Ops 4’s crossplay functionality. Buckle up for a comprehensive deep dive!
What is Meant by Crossplay and Why is it Useful?
Before evaluating if Black Ops 4 offers crossplay support, it is important to clarify what crossplay refers to. I define crossplay as the ability for multiplayer gamers on different hardware platforms to play with each other simultaneously within the same game.
For example, if you game on a PlayStation 5 while your friend games on an Xbox Series X, crossplay means you both can squad up together in the same online match of a crossplay-enabled title. Without crossplay support, you would not be able to play together given the hardware mismatch.
So why is crossplay functionality useful? There are a few key reasons:
1. Unites Gaming Communities and Friends Lists
Crossplay unites gaming communities that would otherwise be fragmented across platforms. Friends who game on different systems can now play their favorite multiplayer titles together despite having distinct consoles or gaming setups.
2. Reduces Matchmaking Times
With a larger cross-platform player pool to matchmake from, matchmaking times are greatly reduced. Players can jump into matches quicker.
3. Extends Lifespan of Multiplayer Games
Crossplay extends the lifespan and relevance of multiplayer games that may otherwise have dwindling player bases on a single platform years later after launch. The collective crossplay community keeps multiplayer lobbies full.
4. Encourages Healthy Multi-Platform Ecosystems
Crossplay facilitates healthy online ecosystems across platforms, where player bases are not isolated to just one hardware vendor. Multi-platform game ownership also becomes more appealing.
Now that we’ve explored the definition and utility of crossplay, let’s evaluate how the feature has been adopted in recent Call of Duty titles before circling back to the focal question around Black Ops 4.
A Review of Crossplay in Modern Call of Duty Games
Recent entries in the iconic first-person shooter franchise from Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games have embraced crossplay support across platforms. Let’s do a quick run-through:
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)
The Modern Warfare reboot delivered a groundbreaking implementation of full crossplay capabilities upon its launch in 2019 across PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC systems. This allowed gamers playing on any of these platforms to matchmake and connect with each other online.
Crossplay support persists today for Modern Warfare on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Battle.net for PC.
Call of Duty: Warzone (2020)
As Activision’s immensely popular free-to-play Call of Duty battle royale experience, Warzone crucially carried on Modern Warfare’s crossplay legacy with launch support across PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
Today, you can enjoy crossplay on Warzone with friends gaming on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. Players across all these platforms can squad up and drop into the action together.
Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021)
The latest entry, Vanguard, also implemented crossplay support at launch for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. Players on any of these systems can connect.
Additionally, Call of Duty: Mobile offers crossplay between iOS and Android devices, further enabling mobile gamers to play together.
As evident above, recent Call of Duty titles have embraced crossplay support across console and PC ecosystems to drive connectivity and bring together wider player pools into unified matchmaking queues.
You may ask – why is any of this relevant context for evaluating if Black Ops 4 has crossplay capabilities? Here’s why…
Black Ops 4 by Treyarch released in 2018 ahead of the strong crossplay momentum established by 2019’s massively popular Modern Warfare reboot and free Warzone spin-off.
So the question is – did Treyarch recognize the inherent benefits of crossplay and implement it in Black Ops 4 upon launch?
Does Black Ops 4 Have Crossplay Support?
Now let’s specifically address the focal question and end suspense once and for all – does Black Ops 4 support crossplay functionality?
The clear answer is no, Black Ops 4 does not have any integrated crossplay capabilities between platforms.
If one plays Black Ops 4 on PS4, they cannot matchmake or connect with friends playing on Xbox One or PC. Each platform’s respective player base and multiplayer offering is completely siloed off in Black Ops 4.
So if you personally game on PS4 while your buddy games on Xbox One, unfortunately you won’t be squadding up together in Black Ops 4 matches despite really wanting to.
While disappointing for fans who yearn for expanded social connectivity, the reality is that by 2018 crossplay was still an emerging concept that was ahead of the technical norms back then. Additionally, business politics likely played a role in hindering any meaningful progress.
But what exactly drove the lack of crossplay support in Black Ops 4? And how does its approach starkly contrast with recent crossplay-enabled Call of Duty titles?
Let’s analyze from both a technical limitations and business decisions standpoint.
Technical Limitations in Delivering Crossplay for BOPS4
From a pure technology maturation perspective, one can argue that mid-2018 was still too nascent a period for robust crossplay implementations between console / PC platforms for blockbuster titles with cutting edge graphics and sound. Simply pulling it off may still have posed immense engineering challenges requiring online architectural rehauls.
It’s also why Sony remained fiercely resistant against opening up crossplay on PS4 with competitors, only to concede when Modern Warfare (2019) arrived to set new industry precedents. Modern Warfare necessitated that industry leaders rally together to push competitive barriers.
However let’s counterfactually envision an alternate timeline where Black Ops 4 contention arose in say 2022 rather than 2018. Would crossplay viability be more convincing for Treyarch in a profoundly more technologically advanced landscape with cloud-driven networking advances?
My personal bet is absolutely. Treyarch would face far less friction in delivering seamless crossplay connectivity today utilizing sophisticated networking middleware solutions from platform-agnostic cloud providers.
But in 2018, Black Ops 4 was burdened by the still maturing state of interoperability frameworks. Hence for Treyarch, focusing engineering resources on crafting an ambitiously differentiating mainline Call of Duty experience with Battle Royale and Zombies elements in lieu of pursuing crossplay may have been the prudent design and technical decision.
It’s nonetheless a compromise from player community inclusivity that stings in retrospect. Let’s move on to business considerations.
The Business Angle Limiting Crossplay Viability for Black Ops 4
Beyond technological constraints in 2018, the gaming industry’s competitive dynamics posed barriers to platforms enabling barrierless crossplay connectivity with rivals back then.
Platform vendors focused intensely on locking in exclusive communities to their respective consoles or storefronts rather than tearing down community-dividing walls.
Call it protectionism or capitalism. But at the end of the day, Activision followed the de-facto business norms by not pushing meaningfully for interoperability in 2018 across Black Ops 4’s siloed variants on PlayStation, Xbox, and Battle.net.
However Modern Warfare (2019) started powerfully reversing industry status quo by rallying platform giants together to collaborate on crossplay for collective benefit. Players won big by uniting.
In 2018 though, had Activision pushed aggressively for persistent online social fabrics transcending intra-title barriers, entrenched platform politics may have hindered progress. It perhaps was judicious for Black Ops 4 to avoid stirring messy hornet nests by maintaining status quo separation.
Additionally, franchises like Call of Duty that enjoy loyal player bases on each platform did not face existential threats from matchmaking network effects fragmentation back then.
Compelling business impetus was arguably absent. Contrast with smaller titles now where crossplay provides a vital population infusion.
In summary, while technological bottlenecks played a role, competitive platform dynamics also likely stifled any serious crossplay discussions for Black Ops 4 across PlayStation and Xbox camps. Maintaining status quo was safest.
Perspective on Black Ops 4 in Today’s Modern Crossplay Era
Given Treyarch just announced Call of Duty 2024, it is unlikely that Black Ops 4 will ever receive a major technical overhaul to activate crossplay at this stage. The title’s core architecture simply wasn’t future proofed back in 2018 to facilitate seamless post-launch crossplay fusion.
However, that leads to speculation on what an alternate Black Ops 4 designed ground up today with crossplay as an integral pillar could look like leveraging contemporary cloud infrastructure.
My vision entails scalable deployment on demand to weave always available social connectivity, enriched presence via custom gamer backcards and cross-title Activity Feed streams.
Cross-progression would persist player identity, progression statistics, inventory assets, and strategic profiles across platforms. Seamless Multi-Access drop-in gameplay could mitigate platform lock-in risks.
Maybe I’m too much of an optimist, but the crossplay design possibilities for a cloud-first title today genuinely feel endless thanks to paradigm shifts.
Alas in the real world, Black Ops 4 remains accessibly playable today only within respective platform pools during matchmaking on PS4, Xbox One or PC.
But the unified future espoused by recent Call of Duty titles highlights positive change is afoot. Could a hypothetical Black Ops 4 remaster one day potentially rectify past limitations? We can hope!
Conclusion
Remember that Black Ops 4 arose in a transitional period before the industry fully embraced interoperability and inclusivity as prime directives thanks to visionary disruptors.
Its solo platform optimization approach accordingly feels outdated now. Yet during 2018’s release window, fractured business realities sadly prevailed.
