Cross-platform key to multiplayer success, US firm says

People are playing more multiplayer games amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and cross-platform, multiplayer games are becoming key to success in the industry according to a report from Unity Software Inc, a leading US company for creating and operating real-time 3D content.

The report, titled 2021 Gaming Report: Unity Insights from 2020 and Predicted Trends for 2021, said gaming success in 2020 was derived from experiences that spanned all platforms, bringing players together no matter what system they owned.

As the gaming industry moves into 2021, 96 percent of developers surveyed believe scalable, cross-platform solutions are critical to the success of a multiplayer game, the report added.

"People are social; they want to play together, and not everyone has the same device to play on," said Ingrid Lestiyo, senior vice president and general manager of operate solutions at Unity, "When you add in large new content updates, we saw an 11 percent increase in the peak number of players playing together."

"The reality is COVID-19 put gaming at the center of people's lives. The living room really became the gaming room. More people playing more games, more often and across more platforms with one another - in particular with families, like mine who are playing together while we have to be apart," Lestiyo added.

Based in San Francisco, Unity provides a comprehensive set of software solutions to create, run and monetize interactive, real-time 2D and 3D content for mobile phones, tablets, PCs, consoles, and augmented and virtual reality devices. The US company said as of the end of the third quarter of 2020, it had approximately 2.7 billion monthly active end-users who consumed content created or operated with its solutions.

According to information provided by Unity, all 20 top Chinese game studios are using Unity's technology, meaning they have at least one game made with Unity. And its China Unity community is also growing very fast. In 2020, China Unity hosted 45 community livestreams and produced tutorial videos racking up more than 2 million page views.

"We believe the world is a better place with more creators in it. China is home to some of the world's best creative minds, and we look forward to seeing what Chinese creators deliver for its player audience, and look forward to supporting those creators in their development," Lestiyo said.