Cross-Game Chat Finally Coming to PS3?

For quite some time now, the majority of PlayStation 3 owners have been adamant to have one feature to their online gaming experience with the PlayStation Network; cross-game chat. Many even requested the feature to be added as “compensation” for the PlayStation Network outage in April, but no such result. However, rumours have now emerged, which could potentially see cross-game chat finally arriving to the PlayStation 3.

During this year’s E3, Sony announced during their briefing earlier this week that the successor to the PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita, will support cross-game chat. What this means is that users can chat with anyone on their PSN friends list, regardless of the games and content that you (or they) are currently playing on.

The cross-game feature will be built into a mini-social networking service, called Party, which is announced to be an exclusive to the handheld. The service will also allow groups of friends to instantly jump into games together online, as well as creating chat rooms.

With a handheld as powerful as the PlayStation Vita; the social side of the device will be a sure-fire hit with fans. But, although SCEA’s Ramana Prakash made it clear that they are only announcing Party for the PlayStation Vita; according to sources from PSU.com, a representative of Sony, who asked to be anonymous, has allegedly hinted that such a service will eventually come to PlayStation 3 systems.

Speculation of cross-game chat arriving to the PlayStation 3 occurred after the Sony briefing at E3 2011, where they also announced that the upcoming instalment of the long-running racing franchise, Wipeout 2048, will also have a cross-platform feature, where people on their PlayStation Vita can link-up and play online with others on their PlayStation 3.

No comment has been made by Sony as to whether such rumours are true. But let’s keep our fingers crossed.

PlayStation Vita will be release in the holiday season, with a price-tag of £229 for Wifi only models, and £279 for models with both Wifi and 3G.

Source: PSU.com