Gears of War 4 hopes to solve the PC versus console conundrum this weekend by trialing cross-platform competitive multiplayer. As part of a special test event, Crossplay Versus hopes to "evaluate the potential of a more permanent crossplay solution in the future to allow Windows 10 and Xbox One gamers to play together in Versus outside of Private Matches."
Which, although a bit of mouthful, means you can go to town with your console compadres and give them what for. With competitive balance at the forefront of the experiment, the Crossplay Versus initiative is designed to give cross-play a trial run within a public playlist.
"What comes next after this hasn’t been decided—this weekend is an incredibly important first step in this process," explains a blog post from developer The Coalition. "Once we use the combination of our data and your feedback together, we’ll be able to make an informed next step (or not as the case may be). The key thing we want to stress is that we won’t be making any surprise changes all of a sudden based on this weekend."
The Coalition continues, calling for as many Gears of War 4 players to sign up as possible—with increased win/loss XP for match completion as an incentive. "Some of you may play this weekend and never match with another PC gamer," adds the post. "Others will. Regardless, we’d truly appreciate your feedback."
Interested? Here's the playlist details:
- Playlist Type: Social
- Modes: Team Deathmatch, Dodgeball, King of the Hill
- Maps: All (including Checkout and Dry Dock)
- Win XP: 1500 (up from 600)
- Loss XP: 750 (up from 100)
- Maximum Squad Size: 5
Gears of War 4's Crossplay Versus event will run from Friday December 2, to Monday December 5. Good luck if you're taking part.
