Crossplay means one game lets people on different machines play together — somebody on a Nintendo Switch in the same world as somebody on an Xbox, a PS5 or a phone. That is the whole concept. It is a feature a game’s publisher chooses to build, so it exists in some games and not in others, and the question that matters is never “does this console do crossplay” but “does this game do crossplay”.
You almost certainly arrived here because a child asked for a specific game so they can play with somebody, and that somebody has a different console. That is a real, answerable question, and the answer is usually yes for the three games most likely to be involved. But there is a second half that catches people out, and it is the reason this page exists:
Crossplay does not mean you can buy the game on any console. It means they can play with somebody on another console. You still have to buy the version for the machine in their house. A Minecraft code for Xbox will not redeem on a Switch, no matter how thoroughly Minecraft supports crossplay. Get that backwards and you have bought a game for the wrong console while being reassured by the word “crossplay” on the box.
What the publishers themselves say
These are the three games a gift buyer is most likely to be asked for, with each publisher’s own published platform list. We have not added a platform to any of these lists.
| Game | Publisher’s own platform list | What you still have to match |
|---|
| Minecraft | Cross-play “with Windows 10, Windows 11, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PS5, and mobile”; on consoles “online multiplayer requires subscription sold separately” | The console version of the purchase, and their console's online membership |
|---|
| Roblox | PlayStation players play together with Roblox users on “Xbox, iOS, Android, desktop and Meta Quest” | Nothing to buy — the game is free. Robux or a gift card is the present |
|---|
| Fortnite | The base game is free on the Epic Games Store and “includes in-app purchases” | Nothing to buy — V-Bucks or a gift card is the present, not the game |
|---|
Notice the pattern in the right-hand column. For the two free games, the present is currency or a card rather than the game, because the game is already installed. That is the single most common wasted gaming gift there is: buying something the child already has for nothing.
The toll nobody mentions: console online play costs money
Crossplay is a feature of the game. Getting onto the internet in the first place is a feature of the console, and on all three of the big ones it is a paid subscription. Mojang says it directly for Minecraft: on consoles, “online multiplayer requires subscription sold separately”.
In practice that means a crossplay game given to a console owner with no membership does not do the thing it was bought to do. Before you buy the game, it is worth finding out whether the subscription is already paid:
- Nintendo Switch — Nintendo Switch Online. Our guide to what it costs lists all four of Nintendo’s published prices, and the Family tier is cheaper than two individuals.
- PlayStation — PlayStation Plus, where Sony lists online multiplayer under all three tiers. Covered in do you need PS Plus to play online.
- Xbox — a Game Pass plan; Microsoft lists online console multiplayer as part of Essential, its entry tier. Our Game Pass tiers comparison sorts out which one to give.
- PC and mobile — generally no toll. This is why the child with a laptop can play and the child with a console cannot.
Crossplay and a child’s account
Crossplay widens the pool of people a child can be matched with, so the account settings matter more rather than less. The publishers handle this themselves and publish how. Epic’s Cabined Accounts policy says a player under 13, or under their country’s age of digital consent, gets voice chat, text chat and real-money purchases switched off until a parent consents — while still being able to play with full access to content they already own. Mojang’s own parental-controls article explains the Microsoft-account side, where a parent sets multiplayer and chat permissions to “Everyone, Friends, or Block”.
None of that is a reason to avoid a crossplay game. It is a reason to spend ten minutes on the settings with the person who owns the account, which is a better use of time than any amount of reading about ratings. If the recipient is young, our what age Minecraft is for and what age Roblox is for guides both cover the specific controls those two games expose.
The two-question version
1. Which console is in their house? Buy that version. Crossplay never changes this.
2. Is their online membership paid up? If not, that is the better present, and it is usually cheaper than the game.