Does PUBG Support Crossplay with Console & PC?

PUBG has had a somewhat complicated history when it comes to crossplay functionality. Let’s dive into the details:

1. Crossplay Between Consoles

PUBG does support crossplay between PlayStation and Xbox consoles. Players on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S can all compete against one another in the same matches. This functionality allows friends on different consoles to squad up and play together seamlessly.

The console crossplay feature was introduced in 2019 and has been a welcome addition for PUBG players. It helps maintain healthy player populations across the various console versions of the game.

2. No Crossplay Between PC and Consoles

However, PUBG does not support crossplay between PC and console platforms. Players on the PC version cannot join matches with those on PlayStation or Xbox.

This restriction is primarily due to the significant differences in gameplay between the platforms. PC players have advantages with mouse and keyboard controls, higher frame rates, and customized settings, which would make it unbalanced to match them against controller-wielding console players. The developers have cited these technical challenges as the reason for not enabling PC-console crossplay.

3. Crossplay Between Mobile Versions

On the mobile front, PUBG Mobile does support crossplay between iOS and Android devices. Players on either mobile operating system can squad up and compete against each other. This feature helps maintain a large player pool for the mobile version of the game.

4. No Crossplay Between Mobile and Other Platforms

Despite the mobile crossplay functionality, PUBG Mobile does not allow crossplay with the PC or console versions of the game. The mobile version is considered a separate experience tailored for smartphones and tablets, so it remains isolated from other platforms.

5. Reasons for Limited Crossplay

The primary reasons PUBG has not enabled more extensive crossplay options come down to balancing concerns and technical limitations:

1. Control Scheme Differences: The mouse and keyboard provide a significant advantage over controller-based gameplay on consoles. Matching these two control schemes would create an uneven playing field.
2. Performance Disparities: PC players can achieve much higher frame rates and graphical fidelity compared to console players. This difference in performance could lead to imbalances.
3. Cheating Concerns: PC platforms have historically struggled more with cheating and hacking issues. Introducing crossplay could potentially expose console players to these problems.
4. Technical Complexity: Fully integrating crossplay functionality across all platforms would require significant engineering efforts and resources from the PUBG development team.

How to Enable/Disable Console Crossplay in PUBG?

Enabling or disabling crossplay in PUBG on consoles is a straightforward process. Here is the detailed step-by-step guide for both PlayStation and Xbox:

1. Open the Main Menu: Start the game and navigate to the main menu.
2. Access Settings: Select the ‘Settings’ option from the main menu.
   

   

3. Navigate to Gameplay Settings: Scroll across to the ‘Gameplay’ tab.
   

   

4. Enable/Disable Crossplay: Select ‘Cross Platform Play’ and set it to ‘Enable’ to activate crossplay or ‘Disable’ to turn it off.
   

   

↪ Additional Notes

• Default Setting: Crossplay is enabled by default on PlayStation consoles. However, on Xbox, it is disabled by default and must be enabled manually.
• Crossplay Identification: When crossplay is enabled, you will be able to identify players from different consoles through the UI, including kill feeds, death boxes, custom match lobbies, and while spectating.
• Cross-Party Play: This feature allows you to invite and play with friends across different consoles. You can find all these options on the Social screen, accessible by pressing the ‘View’ button (Xbox) or the ‘Square’ button on PlayStation while in the main menu screen.

By following these steps, you can easily manage your crossplay settings in PUBG on both PlayStation and Xbox consoles.

Well, there you have it, folks—the scoop on PUBG’s crossplay capabilities. As we’ve seen, the game has made some strides in this department, but there are still some limitations and technical hurdles to overcome.