Cross platform games are games users can play across multiple devices - like cross platform PC games, console (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch), online cross platform games, and cross platform mobile games (iOS, Android).
Generally speaking, cross platform is an umbrella term for a few different definitions. Here’s an easy way to keep track of them:
The rise of cross platform games
Cross platform games have become a huge trend in recent years, with traditionally mobile studios developing for PC (think Supercell’s Clash of Clans, for example), and traditional PC studios expanding into mobile (Blizzard’s Hearthstone, for example). In fact, Newzoo reports that 25% of gamers play both cross platform mobile games and cross platform PC games, and 23% of players are "tri-platform".
Playing a game across different platforms is not a new concept, but it’s becoming increasingly important to players, and as a result, to developers as well. Although the mobile market is already larger than the console and PC markets combined (with 79% of gamers playing on mobile, followed by PC at 43%, and console at 41%), the attitudes of gamers are changing: they want their favorite games to be available on any platform.
And many studios are listening to their players’ demands. For instance:
- PlayStation began launching cross platform PC games in 2020, expanding their reach beyond console users
- Xbox began launching cross platform games on PlayStation in 2018, and is continuing to make cross platform PC games on Windows 10/11 through their Xbox Play Anywhere initiative released in 2016.
- Roblox started as a PC game but has since exploded as into cross platform mobile games since its 2014 release, showing the potential for growth when games are made accessible on multiple platforms.
This cross platform approach meets the demands of today's average player, ensuring they can enjoy their favorite games anytime, anywhere.
Why now?
It wasn’t always easy for developers to build cross platform games. Historically, developers had to build separate versions of a game for each platform, deal with mobile graphics that were far less advanced than they are today, and had to account for high cloud spend. But that’s changing fast.
Consumer expectations
According to AppsFlyer, modern gamers expect their favorite titles to be available as cross platform games. This is especially true for younger generations, who are used to easily accessible and quick entertainment content no matter where they are, like Netflix, Disney+, and AppleTV. The natural expectation, then, is that games would be accessible everywhere as well. In fact, Scopely, predicted that 65% of their players will engage cross platform, after it launched its mobile game Star Trek: Fleet Command on PC.
Advancements in mobile graphics
We’ve reached a point where phones can now deliver high-quality PC or console-like experiences. New smartphones are equipped with the powerful GPUs needed to deliver a PC or console-like experience. Apple’s A17 Pro and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 are two examples of the latest advancements in mobile graphics technology. Arm, the chip maker, launched ASR, their open-source solution that makes games look better while simultaneously lowering a mobile device’s power consumption.
Single codebase
Since the 2010s, most major game engines - including Unity, Unreal, and Godot - provide developers with the tools and gaming technology they need to create, operate, and publish cross platform games to just about any device. Specifically, they can deploy games to multiple platforms off of a single codebase - meaning instead of writing separate code for each platform, a developer can write it once in C#.
What games are cross platform?
Here are some examples of the top cross platform games in 2024, including cross platform multiplayer games.
- Fortnite by Epic Games: PC, console, mobile
- Minecraft by Mojan Studios: PC, console, mobile
- Call of Duty: Warzone by Activision: PC, console, mobile
- Rocket League by Psyonix: PC, console
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate by Super Evil Megacorp: PC, mobile, console
- Clash of Clans by Supercell: PC, mobile
- King Arthur: Legends Rise by Kabam: PC, mobile
- One Punch Man: World by Crunchyroll: PC, mobile
- Among Us by InnerSloth: PC, mobile, console
- PUBG by PUBG Corporation: PC, mobile and console
How cross platform games benefit the bottom line
There are many advantages to developing cross platform games.
Broader audience reach
By developing cross platform games, developers reach a much broader audience - which in turn increases the game’s addressable market. This means even more opportunity to scale and grow the game. According to a Newzoo report, 52% of gamers play on 1 platform, followed by 32% playing on 2, and 15% playing on 3.
Higher revenue and LTV
Gamers who play cross platform games are a highly valuable cohort. According to Newzoo, these gamers are significantly more likely to spend both time and money in games - ultimately driving up ARPU and LTV. Specifically, tri-platform players game nearly 3x as much as single-platform players; meanwhile, tri-platform players are 2x more likely to make game purchases.
VentureBeat adds that mobile studios expanding to cross platform games see 20-40% of their mobile revenue now coming from PC and web, with some studios even reaching up to 90%.
It makes sense - with more available devices to play the game on, session length and retention increases exponentially, giving the user more opportunities to monetize as well.
Cheaper than building a new game
It’s notoriously difficult and expensive to launch a new game - not to mention risky, as you don’t know if it’ll be a hit until you pour budget into a soft launch. That said, it’s cheaper, less resource intensive, and even more prudent to create a cross platform version of a game that already has a large user base.
Instead of spending months, if not years, at the drawing board, racking up engineering, product, and user acquisition costs trying to make a hit new game, going cross-platform just requires a port to another platform. That’s something you could do in-house or more easily pass to a third-party company.
An easier path to D2C
Developing cross platform games is the first step in going direct-to-consumer, which comes with a ton of benefits. If you’re making a game with cross-play or cross-progression, you’ll need a system for unified logins. This lets players log in on one device and continue playing on another. Think of Riot ID, Scopely ID, or Kabam ID. Naturally, a unified login is a form of D2C since players create an account directly with you, not through an app store.
Why is that so important? Going D2C means you get to:
- access first-party player data like email addresses, which you can use for retargeting (something Apple, Google, and Steam don't share thanks to the IDFA)
- avoid 30% platform fees, should you choose to also distribute the game directly to players (for example, sideloading from your website)
- and more benefits you can read here
Distribute your cross platform games with Stash
Thinking of going cross platform? Stash can help distribute your cross platform games directly to players - so you reap all the benefits of direct-to-consumer we mentioned above. Talk to us here to learn more.