The Killer Instinct reboot landed on Xbox One back in 2013, with a Windows 10 version turning up in 2016 alongside the game"s third season of content. Back in June, the fighting game was then announced to be leaving the Microsoft ecosystem exclusivity, with it on its way to Steam, however, no release date information was given away.
Three months later, Microsoft has finally made Killer Instinct available on Steam, and better yet, the Steam version is also cross-platform play enabled. The feature"s inclusion was revealed by the developer earlier this month.
Essentially, this means that Xbox One, Windows 10, and Steam players are all in a single player pool, making everyone a one big happy family. While cross-play between Xbox One and Windows 10 has been available since launch, Steam"s addition to the mix should help in boosting the active player base even more.
There are some restrictions, however, with cross-play only available in Exhibition, Lobby, and Shadow Lords multiplayer modes. Moreover, inviting friends to Exhibition matches will only work within the same platform, with the developer recommending to create a custom lobby and letting friends join that way as a workaround.
The Steam version costs $39.99 and arrives with all characters, stages, costumes, colors, and modes. Since purchasing the identically priced Killer Instinct: Definitive Edition on the Microsoft Store doesn"t grant the skins that Steam users are now getting with their copies, the developer has decided to make all Gold and Terror skin packs free for Killer Instinct: Definitive Edition owners. These skins will start rolling out to users in the coming days.
With Rise of Nations: Extended Edition and now Killer Instinct both available on Steam with cross-play capabilities, let"s hope we get to see even more Microsoft games being released on Steam in the future.
Source: Xbox Wire, Ultra Combo
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