Is The Ascent Crossplay Compatible Between PC, Xbox, & Steam? Answered

The Ascent is a new cyberpunk, twin-stick shooter that tasks you with uncovering the mysterious decline of a mega-corporation as you ascend through the layered world of Veles. It’s a game that’s best enjoyed in co-op multiplayer with friends, but that will likely raise the question of ‘is The Ascent crossplay compatible between PC, Xbox, and Steam users?’

The Ascent Crossplay Explained

The Ascent is crossplay compatible, but only between Xbox One/Series X|S users, and those playing on PC via the Xbox app.

Unfortunately, if you’re trying to play with a friend who’s playing on PC with a Steam version of the game, you cannot crossplay with those playing on Xbox consoles.

The reason for this? Simply put, Xbox has created an ecosystem that covers both its consoles, and playing games purchased through the Microsoft Store, or via the Xbox App/Game Pass.

As Steam is its own, separate entity from Xbox, they aren’t part of this ecosystem, and so the crossplay matchmaking is unavailable. That doesn’t mean there’s not the possibility of a workaround, however, but that’s not arrived just yet.

So, to summarize:

• Play via the Xbox App on PC + Friends on Xbox = The Ascent Crossplay Works
• Play via Steam on PC + Friends on Xbox = The Ascent Crossplay Does Not Work

Hopefully, this helps explain what’s going on with The Ascent’s crossplay multiplayer situation. With a bit of luck, this is something that can be resolved in a future patch. If this does happen, we’ll update this post and let you know.

For more of our coverage on the game, be sure to search for Twinfinite, or click the links below.