Sea of Thieves cross-play will become optional ahead of the PvP update

Everyone plays together in Sea of Thieves, whether they’re on Xbox One or PC, but ahead of the launch of the PvP mode, Arena, console players will be able to opt out of sharing the world with mouse-wielding pirates.

The changes haven’t been dated yet, but expect them just before Arena’s arrival later this year. For us PC lot, there won’t be any difference. We’ll all keep playing in the regular, shared servers with whatever Xbox One players want to join us. Sea of Thieves will also start supporting mouse and keyboard on Xbox One soon, and those players will automatically be put in the cross-play pool.

Xbox One players using a controller, however, will be given a choice about where to go on their high seas adventures. They can stick with cross-play, or they can choose to play only with other Xbox One players using a controller.

Cross-play is great, but it does sometimes highlight the disparity in controls and performance between consoles and PC. Outside of competitive scenarios, it’s not a big problem, but in a more aggressive mode like Arena, the gulf between the platforms might appear a little larger. Rare’s taking a pretty sensible approach, then, by not actively splitting the community but still giving players a choice.

Today is also the last day in the Sea of Thieves sale, where it’s 50 percent off.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.