Xbox has been building a relationship with PC gamers for years. Between an Xbox app living on Windows, its PC Game Pass subscription service, and its Play Anywhere feature that lets you pay for a game once and then play it on Xbox and PC, the relationship continues to grow.
PlayStation has clearly taken notice and is now looking to close the gap between the experience on a PlayStation console and playing the same game on PC. In a blog post, Julian Huijbregts, the Online Community Specialist at Nixxes Software, announced that Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut for PC enables crossplay between PS4, PS5 and PC for the multiplayer Legends mode.
As we’ve announced previously, Ghost on Tsushima Director’s Cut on PC contains the full game, the Iki Island expansion, and the cooperative online multiplayer Legends mode. Thanks to cross-play support, Legends players on Windows PCs can team up with players on both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 consoles and use in-game voice chat to communicate. You will be required to sign into your PlayStation Network account to access Legends mode.
While that’s great, there are other PlayStation titles that have come to PC and enabled crossplay — I see you, Helldivers 2. Even bigger, Ghost of Tsushima is the first PC game to feature a new PlayStation overlay where you can see your Friends, Trophies, Settings, and Profile.
Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut is the first PlayStation title on PC that uses a new PlayStation overlay, which includes your Friends list, Trophies, Settings, and your Profile. This feature is available on Windows PCs and will be accessible from the in-game menu or, for keyboard players, by pressing the “SHIFT +F1” shortcut on your keyboard.
The integration runs pretty deep since, as explained in the post, gamers will now be able to earn Trophies on PC just like they can on console when they link their PlayStation account in the overlay.
While playing the game, you can earn PlayStation Trophies just like on PlayStation consoles. Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut on PC shares the same Trophy set as the game on PlayStation 5 consoles*. In addition, the PC version also has full support for Achievements on Steam and the Epic Games Store.
To make use of features like Trophies, Friends list, and cross-play, you can sign in with your existing account for PlayStation Network or create a new account. The use of PlayStation overlay is optional for both the single player experience and Legends mode.
This is a big deal as it draws the gaming experience for PlayStation and PC players closer together. I wouldn’t have even considered PlayStation a platform that supports PC like Xbox does, but after today’s news, I’m starting to recognize that there is competition heating up here.
Of course, Xbox still has a leg up, being owned by Microsoft (maker of Windows) and already supporting other things like PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (which includes both Xbox and PC games in the library). PlayStation has PlayStation Extra and Premium (its own game subscription services), but neither is compatible with a PC unless you’re playing through the cloud.
Play Anywhere is also a benefit currently unique to Xbox gamers for supported games. While you can play a PlayStation title on PC and PS5, you’re going to have to pay for both versions in all cases where, with Xbox, you might dodge that financial hit depending on the game.
While PlayStation has some ground to make up here, it’s obvious that the company wants to compete more in the PC space with Xbox and I’m here for it. Competition is good and we all benefit. Maybe PlayStation will go nuts, forget Windows, and become the go-to platform to game on a Mac. Okay, maybe not.
