According to Wccftech, PlayStation appears to be preparing a cross-buy feature that would let users purchase a game once and get both PS5 and PC versions. The evidence comes from recent discoveries by leakers Amethxst and billbil-kun, who found new icons on the PlayStation Store suggesting cross-buy functionality. These icons can apparently be seen by inserting special characters into the “About” section of PlayStation Network accounts. Even more telling, CSS files on PlayStation’s website contain a “crossbuy-tag” that dates back to June 2025. While PlayStation previously offered cross-buy between Vita and home consoles, this appears to be a new initiative focused on modern platforms. The timing suggests this could launch alongside the rumored PlayStation handheld expected with PlayStation 6.
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About Time for Cross-Platform
Here’s the thing – Xbox has been doing this for years with Play Anywhere. You buy a first-party game once, and you own it on both Xbox and PC. PlayStation has been lagging behind in this area, and honestly it’s been frustrating for gamers who play across platforms. Now they’re finally catching up? Better late than never, I suppose.
But here’s what makes me skeptical. PlayStation has been pretty protective of their ecosystem. They want you buying games on their store, playing on their hardware. So why suddenly embrace PC? My guess is they’ve seen the numbers – PC gaming is massive, and they’re leaving money on the table by not having a unified purchase system. Still, I’ll believe it when I see it actually implemented.
The Technical Headaches
Making cross-buy work between PS5 and PC isn’t as simple as flipping a switch. You’ve got different storefronts, different DRM systems, different achievement systems. How do you handle save data synchronization? What about DLC? And let’s not forget – Sony would need some kind of PC storefront or launcher to make this work properly.
Basically, they’re either building their own Steam competitor (unlikely) or partnering with existing stores (complicated). Either way, it’s a massive undertaking. The fact that code references date back to June 2025 suggests they’ve been working on this for a while, but that doesn’t mean it’s anywhere near ready for prime time.
What This Means for Gamers
If PlayStation actually pulls this off, it could be huge. No more buying the same game twice if you want to play on both console and PC. No more worrying about which platform to buy a game on. For people who invest in gaming hardware across different environments – whether that’s industrial panel PCs from IndustrialMonitorDirect.com or high-end home setups – this kind of flexibility matters.
And think about the handheld angle. If that rumored PlayStation portable is real, cross-buy between PS5, PC, and a handheld would be a killer feature. But we’ve been burned by PlayStation hardware promises before. Remember the Vita? Exactly.
So is this actually happening? The evidence is compelling, but until Sony makes an official announcement, I’m keeping my expectations in check. The gaming industry is full of features that showed up in code and never materialized. Still, it’s encouraging to see PlayStation potentially moving toward a more consumer-friendly approach. We’ll be watching.
